not testify about hush money payments to an adult film star. it comes as his former fixer, michael cohen, does appear before the grand jury. our nbc news exclusive. uk prime minister rishi sunak. his first u.s. broadcast interview since taking office as he joins president biden and australia s leader to announce a nuclear submarine deal. his tough words for china, calling it a systemic challenge to the world order. what he thinks about the origins of covid and what s his relationship like with king charles? and winning everything at the oscars. the movie making history on hollywood s biggest night. announcer: this is nbc nightly news with lester holt. good evening, everyone. president biden was up early in front of the cameras before the markets opened this morning in a move to calm jitters following a pair of bank collapses. mr. biden declaring the banking system is safe and telling customers your deposits will be there when you need them. new york s signature bank
is there something folks should be doing or not doing? well, here s the good news. you actually now need to do nothing. because of this failure and the worry that there could be contagion the u.s. government has now effectively guaranteed all deposits and said keep your money where it is. no matter what happens to these banks we are insuring the money you have there no matter how much money you have in the bank. andrew ross sorkin, thank you. tens of millions are under winter weather alerts on both coasts. here in california yet another major storm is on the way. while on the other side of the country they re bracing for a nor easter. miguel almaguer is in northern california. miguel, more pain in the forecast. reporter: absolutely, lester. that s what the forecast says. and while the sun is out here today these flood waters have not receded and now there s rain, a whole lot more of it, on the way. tonight wading through a sea of mud and muck. the flooded community of pajaro is
paying enough attention to rising interest rates and the threat that they posed to the bank. we ve reached out to silicon valley bank but have not heard back. lester? all right. jake ward starting us off. thank you. for more let me bring in andrew ross sorkin. he s a new york times columnist and co-anchor of squawk box on cnbc. andrew, help us understand how did we get here in the first place? this started because at silicon valley bank they lost $2 billion. and that was really the smoke that lit the fire that scared people. and many of their clients, a lot of venture capitalists in silicon valley, they screamed theater in a crowded theater and everybody ran for the exits. and that s what ultimately created a run on the bank. that s what led to the failure of that bank. but it also led to even bigger questions about other small and regional banks across the country and whether others would leave them too. and that brings up the question of what should people at home be doing.
deposits will be there when you need them. new york s signature bank following silicon valley bank down the road to collapse over the weekend. those banks are tonight in the hands of regulators. in addition to telling folks their money is safe, the president today called on congress and banking regulators to strengthen banking rules to prevent such failures in the future. the government reassurance appeared o a lo toward easing nerves on wall street. however, concerns remain over whether it s all over. nbc s jake ward has much more. reporter: with two u.s. banks being forced into closure in recent days president biden sought to assure the country before markets opened this morning. amecans can have confidence that the banking system is safe. your deposits will be there when you need them. reporter: his administration announcing sunday night that customers at silicon valley bank, which collapsed on friday, and signature bank in new york, which was shut down on sunday, would be mad
find out what your case could be worth. we will help get you the best result possible. call one eight hundred, eight million tonight, president biden seeking to reassure americans their money is secure after two of the largest bank failures in u.s. history. the president coming before the camera today saying the banking system is safe after the government took emergency action to protect deposits from two banks that collapsed. can anxious customers now access their money? the new fallout for smaller banks and fears of a larger crisis. also tonight, the major nor easter on the move. a state of emergency in new york. and another atmospheric river taking aim at flood-ravaged california. we re tracking it all. donald trump in iowa tonight after his lawyer said he will