First Republic Taps Messina Group for Advice on Biden Dealings

First Republic Bank has tapped The Messina Group, a consulting firm set up by the former deputy chief of staff to President Barack Obama, for advice on its dealings with the Biden administration as it seeks to negotiate a rescue from turmoil among regional lenders.

(Bloomberg) — First Republic Bank has tapped The Messina Group, a consulting firm set up by the former deputy chief of staff to President Barack Obama, for advice on its dealings with the Biden administration as it seeks to negotiate a rescue from turmoil among regional lenders.

The lender is working with the firm launched in 2013 by Jim Messina, according to people familiar with the matter who asked not to be identified discussing private information. It’s unclear what traction, if any, the firm has received with President Joe Biden’s White House, the people said.

Representatives for First Republic and The Messina Group declined to comment.

First Republic is exploring divesting $50 billion to $100 billion of assets in a bid to shore up its balance sheet to avoid being seized by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. and clear the path for a possible capital raise, Bloomberg News reported earlier Tuesday. The bank may need the US government to facilitate negotiations with some of the country’s largest banks to stabilize the lender as it executes its turnaround, Bloomberg reported.

Shares in the San Francisco-based firm closed at a record low of $8.10, giving it a market capitalization of $1.5 billion, a fraction of the roughly $23 billion it commanded in early March, before Silicon Valley Bank’s demise and the subsequent selloff of regional bank stocks.

–With assistance from Matthew Monks and Jennifer Epstein.

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