This case study focuses on the emergence of art finance, a way to provide liquidity to art collectors by structuring loans using works of art as collateral. Sayuri Ganepola, global managing director of Art Finance at Christie's, provides a view of art lending from Christie's perspective and describes Christie's competitive advantages in this new line of business. Ganepola has to decide whether to lend against a portfolio of art and what risks such a loan could entail, given her overall portfolio of art loans. Students receive information on the collateral and are asked to provide recommendations. The field-based case provides background on the history of Christie's, its businesses, and its art lending operations. The case also discusses the art market and its historical returns on investment. Students have the opportunity to consider art as collateral for a loan and to discuss the challenges of risk management in art lending. At the Darden School of Business, this case is taught in "Financial Institutions and Markets," a second-year MBA elective. It is ideally suited for a course on financial institutions, money and banking, and risk management.

The case describes the demise of Credit Suisse Group AG (Credit Suisse), along with Credit Suisse's history and its significance for global markets and Switzerland. The case examines key episodes during the past 15 years that point to risk-management lapses, weak corporate governance, and ineffective restructurings. The case also discusses Credit Suisse's financial performance, capital and liquidity metrics over time, and its CEOs' efforts to alter its course. Finally, the case describes the reaction of the Swiss regulators during the final hours, the forced merger of Credit Suisse with UBS Group AG (UBS), and the potential impact of a bankruptcy on global markets and Switzerland. Given Credit Suisse's status as one of 30 systemically important financial institutions (SIFIs) globally, its demise opens questions related to the efficacy of regulation after the global financial crisis (GFC), the role of regulators, and bank corporate governance. Ultimately, this case asks, "What are the lessons we can learn from Credit Suisse's demise?" in hopes that they won't be repeated.

On March 10, 2023, Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) went into receivership. At the time, it was the second-largest US bank failure in history. What happened? The case briefly describes the story of SVB, from its origin in the early 1980s to March 2023, and focuses on the events surrounding its demise. The case discusses in detail the issues that led to SVB's bankruptcy, in particular interest-rate risk, asset-liability management (ALM), inadequate stress testing, risk management more broadly, corporate governance, regulation, issues related to the bank's focus on venture capital (VC) and private equity (PE) loans, and its exposure to the technology sector. The case also describes the Fed's reaction after the bankruptcy. The SVB episode offers an important learning opportunity that touches many facets of a bank and its environment. It has several clear messages about bank management leadership. The case is well suited for a course on financial institutions, money and banking, and risk management. Ideally it would be positioned after credit, interest-rate, and liquidity risks have been covered, so that students have a better understanding of these concepts before they tackle this case; it could also be used as an introduction to the banking model, its key risks, and the role of the Federal Reserve. At Darden, it is taught in the second-year elective, "Financial Institutions and Markets."

This case examines a fictional hedge fund manager's decision about whether to maintain his fund's position in bitcoin. It provides an opportunity for students to develop an investment thesis for or against bitcoin, evaluate alternative ways to gain exposure to bitcoin, and consider bitcoin's economic function (e.g., as a currency or commodity). The case can be used in an MBA elective course on fintech, capital markets, or investments.