PacWest Bank considers sale options as shares plummet.

Shares in California lender PacWest plummeted by as much as 60% amid fears of a new US banking crisis. The bank is in talks with several potential investors and has not experienced out-of-the-ordinary deposit flows. The US regional banking system is at risk, according to Bill Ackman, CEO of the New York hedge fund Pershing Square. Smaller, regional banks play a much larger role in the American economy, accounting for nearly half of consumer and business lending. JP Morgan recently acquired a majority of First Republic’s assets in a $10.6bn deal after regulators seized the lender, which became the largest US bank failure since the 2008 financial crisis.