Wall Street leaders and U.S. officials discussing an intervention at First Republic Bank are exploring the possibility of government backing to encourage a deal that would shore up the lender, people with knowledge of the matter say.

The government-backed acquisition heads off regulatory and financial concerns at a Swiss bank that could have affected overseas financial institutions that U.S. lenders count on.

After a bank run led to Signature Bank's failure, New York Community Bancorp bought much of what was left from the FDIC. The acquirer now faces questions about how it will persuade the remaining depositors to stick around.

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. says it has extended the deadline for bids on Silicon Valley Bank, will break the bank into two parts for sale and will allow nonbanks to bid on asset portfolios.

The high-stakes acquisitions of 2008 and subsequent legal liabilities have sapped enthusiasm from many prospective buyers for Silicon Valley and Signature Banks. The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. may end up having to sell assets piece by piece.

The privately held lender, which has 68 branches covering 45 states, will help to expand Guild's footprint into reverse mortgage lending.

Despite ending 2022 in the red, the lender and servicer saw full-year profits exceed 2021's total.

The announcement came as a Federal Trade Commission suit to halt the deal became more likely.

The move comes nine months after Homebridge ended a planned merger last June with fintech Figure Technologies over delays in closing among other factors.

A legal filing could come as soon as Thursday, sources close to the matter claimed.