A pack of batteries, some band aids or maybe a failed bank. That’s what £1 will buy these days.
Banking giant HSBC
HSBA,
bought the U.K. arm of Silicon Valley Bank
SIVB,
for exactly that sum of money — roughly $1.21– in a rescue deal finalized early Monday, and coordinated by the U.K. Treasury, the Bank of England and Europe’s biggest bank to avoid a potential banking crisis in Britain.
U.S. regulators also stepped in over the weekend, approving emergency measures to safeguard customer deposits at Silicon Valley Bank
SIVB,
which became the second-biggest bank failure in U.S. history after a $42 billion run on the tech-focused lender.
The move may bring a sigh of relief to the businesses and people affected, amid panic that start-ups with money tucked away at SVB U.K. would struggle to meet payrolls and other obligations. The U.K. Treasury assured that no taxpayer money has been involved and customer deposits have been protected.
Venture capitalists and tech start-up advocates have praised the move. Raph Crouan, founder of start-up advisor DisruptVenture, tweeted it was the “best outcome” for its tech founders impacted by SVB’s collapse.
“All night work = results & end of crisis. Now off to work,” he tweeted on Monday.
Read: 20 banks that are sitting on huge potential securities losses—as was SVB
Poundland discount store in Nottingham, central England.
oli scarff/Agence France-Presse/Getty Images
Meanwhile, with the rising cost of living in the U.K. and CPI inflation at 10.1% in January, there’s not much that can be bought for one pound anymore, not even in popular discount store Poundland.
But we’ve found some bargains in case buying a collapsed bank is not on the cards:
Elastoplast £1 fabric band aids from Poundland
Poundland
How about a set of eco-friendly disposable plates? Or maybe some chocolate chips?
Poundland £1 disposable Areca palm plates
Poundland
Poundland £1 bag of chocolate chips
Poundland
Or even a 10-pack of batteries.
Poundland 1 batteries
Poundland
And with that symbolic pound you can also take home some good old-fashioned elbow grease:
Elbow Grease 500ml
Poundland
