The 27 scariest moments of the financial crisis (2024)

Table of Contents
FEB. 8, 2007: HSBC says its bad debt provisions exploded because of a slump in the U.S. housing market. Normal people begin to learn what subprime is. APRIL 2, 2007: New Century files for bankruptcy. It was the largest subprime lender in the United States. JUNE 21, 2007: Merrill Lynch sells off assets in two Bear Stearns hedge funds as the funds hemorrhage billions of dollars on bad subprime bets. AUG. 9, 2007: France's largest bank, BNP Paribas, freezes withdrawals from three investment funds after U.S. subprime mortgage losses crush markets. "The complete evaporation of liquidity in certain market segments of the U.S. securitization market has made it impossible to value certain assets fairly regardless of their quality or credit rating," BNP said in the release. SEPT. 4, 2007: Libor — the interbank interest rate — hits 6.7975%, its highest level since December 1998. OCT. 24, 2007: Merrill Lynch announces an $8.4 billion quarterly loss, the largest in its history, thanks to write-downs on subprime mortgages. OCT. 31, 2007: Meredith Whitney says Citigroup will have to cut its dividend. Later, it does. OCT to NOV 2007: Many CEOs would not make it through the financial crisis. Stan O'Neal at Merrill and Chuck Prince at Citigroup both exit, taking monster severance packages with them. O'Neal, for one, walked out with $161.5 million. DEC. 11, 2007: The FOMC reduces the federal funds rate to 4.25% and cuts the primary credit rate to 4.75%. 2008: Insurers like MBIA, who have written against the failure of CDOs, get downgraded and collapse. Hedge funder Bill Ackman would reportedly make his investors over $1 billion on a short position. SEPT. 7, 2008: The saga of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, guarantor of half of U.S. mortgages, culminates with a takeover by the U.S. government. SEPT. 14, 2008: Bank of America buys Merrill Lynch for $50 billion. SEPT. 15, 2008: Meanwhile, Lehman Brothers can't find a buyer and files for bankruptcy. SEPT. 17, 2008: The Fed rescues insurance giant AIG from bankruptcy for $85 billion. FALL 2008: Longstanding banking giants like Wachovia and Washington Mutual begin to disappear as they are bought by other banks for pennies on the dollar. SEPT. 29, 2008: The U.S. House of Representatives defeats a proposed $700 billion emergency bailout package, 228-205. Stocks plunge 778 points. OCT. 3, 2008: TARP is passed. Congress approves a $700 billion bank bailout, but stocks continue to fall following investor worries that the bailout won't be enough. OCT. 8, 2008: The New York Fed bails out AIG for the second time, for $37.8 billion. OCT. 13, 2008: Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson sits down with nine major bank CEOs. When they leave the room hours later, the federal government has taken a huge equity position in Wall Street. The total bailout package looks more like $2.25 trillion, well more than the original $700 billion available. OCT. 15, 2008: The stock market has another hellish day, plunging 733 points (7.9%). OCT. 16, 2008: Warren Buffett authors a New York Times op-ed called "Buy American. I Am." He gets absolutely crushed by critics when markets crash further. Rising stock prices in the post-crisis years would later vindicate him. OCT 2008: Commentators wonder if this is the end of life as we know it. "The worst financial crisis since the Great Depression is claiming another casualty: American-style capitalism," wrote The Washington Post's Anthony Faiola. Simon Jenkins at The Guardian called this line of thinking "journalistic wish-fulfillment and glee." DEC. 11, 2008: The NBER announces that the economy is officially in a recession. FEB. 17, 2009: Obama signs the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. NOV 2008 — SPRING 2009: The Financial Crisis continues, crippling employment. Eventually the Dow Jones plunged to 6,547.05 on March 9, 2009. It was at its lowest since April 1997. Banks would continue to report losses, fight regulation efforts, and eventually stomach higher capital requirements. Eventually, after extraordinary bailouts from the Fed and Congress, the market bottomed and the economy slowly recovered. And now, take a look at... FAQs

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2018-09-14T09:55:00Z

The 27 scariest moments of the financial crisis (1)

REUTERS/Hyungwon Kang

Elevenyears ago, the US economy went into recession, the US housing market crashed, and credit markets seized bringing the banking industry to its knees. It was a global financial crisis.

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Businesses went down and workerslost jobs. And Americans were losing hope, which only made things work.

For many, the low critical moment was when Lehman Brothers went bankrupt on September 15, 2008.But the memory ofcritical eventsbefore and after that fateful day is slowly fading. Hearings, lawsuits, bailouts — it all gets muddled together.

Business Insider has outlined the major moments from 2007 to 2009. From the initial reports of subprime defaults to the collapse of Lehman Brothers to AIG's second bailout, here are the 27 scariest moments of the financial crisis.

Note: Former Business Insider reporters Steven Perlberg and Elena Holodny contributed to this feature.

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FEB. 8, 2007: HSBC says its bad debt provisions exploded because of a slump in the U.S. housing market. Normal people begin to learn what subprime is.

The 27 scariest moments of the financial crisis (2)

Flickr

Source: BBC

APRIL 2, 2007: New Century files for bankruptcy. It was the largest subprime lender in the United States.

The 27 scariest moments of the financial crisis (3)

Thomson Reuters

Source: SEC Filing

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JUNE 21, 2007: Merrill Lynch sells off assets in two Bear Stearns hedge funds as the funds hemorrhage billions of dollars on bad subprime bets.

The 27 scariest moments of the financial crisis (4)

REUTERS/Chip East

Source: Reuters

AUG. 9, 2007: France's largest bank, BNP Paribas, freezes withdrawals from three investment funds after U.S. subprime mortgage losses crush markets. "The complete evaporation of liquidity in certain market segments of the U.S. securitization market has made it impossible to value certain assets fairly regardless of their quality or credit rating," BNP said in the release.

The 27 scariest moments of the financial crisis (5)

REUTERS/Charles Platiau

Source: Bloomberg

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SEPT. 4, 2007: Libor — the interbank interest rate — hits 6.7975%, its highest level since December 1998.

The 27 scariest moments of the financial crisis (6)

Thomson Reuters

Source: BBC

OCT. 24, 2007: Merrill Lynch announces an $8.4 billion quarterly loss, the largest in its history, thanks to write-downs on subprime mortgages.

The 27 scariest moments of the financial crisis (7)

REUTERS/Andrew Burton

Source: Bloomberg

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OCT. 31, 2007: Meredith Whitney says Citigroup will have to cut its dividend. Later, it does.

The 27 scariest moments of the financial crisis (8)

CIBC

Source: Bloomberg Businessweek

OCT to NOV 2007: Many CEOs would not make it through the financial crisis. Stan O'Neal at Merrill and Chuck Prince at Citigroup both exit, taking monster severance packages with them. O'Neal, for one, walked out with $161.5 million.

The 27 scariest moments of the financial crisis (9)

Reuters

Source: NBC

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DEC. 11, 2007: The FOMC reduces the federal funds rate to 4.25% and cuts the primary credit rate to 4.75%.

The 27 scariest moments of the financial crisis (10)

REUTERS/Yuri Gripas

Source: FOMC

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2008: Insurers like MBIA, who have written against the failure of CDOs, get downgraded and collapse. Hedge funder Bill Ackman would reportedly make his investors over $1 billion on a short position.

The 27 scariest moments of the financial crisis (11)

REUTERS/Eduardo Munoz

Source: Confidence Game

SEPT. 7, 2008: The saga of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, guarantor of half of U.S. mortgages, culminates with a takeover by the U.S. government.

The 27 scariest moments of the financial crisis (12)

REUTERS/Shannon Stapleton

Source: Treasury Dept. press release

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SEPT. 14, 2008: Bank of America buys Merrill Lynch for $50 billion.

The 27 scariest moments of the financial crisis (13)

Flickr

Source: CNN Money

SEPT. 15, 2008: Meanwhile, Lehman Brothers can't find a buyer and files for bankruptcy.

The 27 scariest moments of the financial crisis (14)

REUTERS/Kevin Coombs

Source: CNBC

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SEPT. 17, 2008: The Fed rescues insurance giant AIG from bankruptcy for $85 billion.

The 27 scariest moments of the financial crisis (15)

REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst

Source: NYT

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FALL 2008: Longstanding banking giants like Wachovia and Washington Mutual begin to disappear as they are bought by other banks for pennies on the dollar.

The 27 scariest moments of the financial crisis (16)

Flickr

Source: WSJ, CNN Money

SEPT. 29, 2008: The U.S. House of Representatives defeats a proposed $700 billion emergency bailout package, 228-205. Stocks plunge 778 points.

The 27 scariest moments of the financial crisis (17)

YouTube/AP

Source: NYT

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OCT. 3, 2008: TARP is passed. Congress approves a $700 billion bank bailout, but stocks continue to fall following investor worries that the bailout won't be enough.

The 27 scariest moments of the financial crisis (18)

Flickr

Source:CNBC

OCT. 8, 2008: The New York Fed bails out AIG for the second time, for $37.8 billion.

The 27 scariest moments of the financial crisis (19)

REUTERS/ Tim Chong

Source:CNBC

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OCT. 13, 2008: Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson sits down with nine major bank CEOs. When they leave the room hours later, the federal government has taken a huge equity position in Wall Street. The total bailout package looks more like $2.25 trillion, well more than the original $700 billion available.

The 27 scariest moments of the financial crisis (20)

Getty Images

Source: NYT

OCT. 15, 2008: The stock market has another hellish day, plunging 733 points (7.9%).

The 27 scariest moments of the financial crisis (21)

Flickr

Source:CNBC

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OCT. 16, 2008: Warren Buffett authors a New York Times op-ed called "Buy American. I Am." He gets absolutely crushed by critics when markets crash further. Rising stock prices in the post-crisis years would later vindicate him.

The 27 scariest moments of the financial crisis (22)

Reuters/Jason Reed

Source: NYT

OCT 2008: Commentators wonder if this is the end of life as we know it. "The worst financial crisis since the Great Depression is claiming another casualty: American-style capitalism," wrote The Washington Post's Anthony Faiola. Simon Jenkins at The Guardian called this line of thinking "journalistic wish-fulfillment and glee."

The 27 scariest moments of the financial crisis (23)

REUTERS

Source: WaPo, Guardian

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DEC. 11, 2008: The NBER announces that the economy is officially in a recession.

The 27 scariest moments of the financial crisis (24)

Chip Somodevilla / Getty Images

Source: NBER

FEB. 17, 2009: Obama signs the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.

The 27 scariest moments of the financial crisis (25)

Flickr

Source:CNBC

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NOV 2008 — SPRING 2009: The Financial Crisis continues, crippling employment. Eventually the Dow Jones plunged to 6,547.05 on March 9, 2009. It was at its lowest since April 1997.

The 27 scariest moments of the financial crisis (26)

Flickr

Source: CNN Money

Banks would continue to report losses, fight regulation efforts, and eventually stomach higher capital requirements.

The 27 scariest moments of the financial crisis (27)

Flickr

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Eventually, after extraordinary bailouts from the Fed and Congress, the market bottomed and the economy slowly recovered.

The 27 scariest moments of the financial crisis (28)

Thomson Reuters

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The 27 scariest moments of the financial crisis (29)

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The 27 scariest moments of the financial crisis (2024)

FAQs

What group was the hardest hit by the 2008 financial crisis? ›

17951), co-authors Hilary Hoynes, Douglas Miller, and Jessamyn Schaller find that the impacts of the Great Recession (December 2007 to June 2009) have been greater for men, for black and Hispanic workers, for young workers, and for less educated workers than for others in the labor market.

What was the worst economic collapse in history? ›

The Great Depression of 1929–39

Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. This was the worst financial and economic disaster of the 20th century. Many believe that the Great Depression was triggered by the Wall Street crash of 1929 and later exacerbated by the poor policy decisions of the U.S. government.

Which countries were hit hardest by the recession of 2008? ›

The Carnegie Endowment for International Peace reports in its International Economics Bulletin that Ukraine, as well as Argentina and Jamaica, were the countries most deeply affected by the crisis. Other severely affected countries were Romania, Ireland, Russia, Mexico, Hungary, the Baltic states.

What was the worst day of the 2008 financial crisis? ›

Financial institutions worldwide suffered severe damage, reaching a climax with the bankruptcy of Lehman Brothers on September 15, 2008, and a subsequent international banking crisis.

Who is hit hardest during a financial crisis? ›

As presented in this paper, data for both the current and previous financial crises reveals that young people are indeed hit hardest as reflected by rising unemployment rates, which persist long after the economy is growing again.

Who got rich from the 2008 recession? ›

The result? When the market rebounded, Getty was a rich man, thanks to his action when the economy appeared to be at its worst. The same thing happened to people like Warren Buffett, Jamie Dimon, and Carl Icahn during the Great Recession of 2008.

Will the US economy collapse in 2024? ›

The Federal Reserve's policymaking committee of 19 officials released a new set of economic projections last week, showing that they now expect economic growth in 2024, 2025 and 2026 to be even stronger than they previously thought.

What happens if the US economy collapses? ›

As prices eventually come down, so do wages, leading to an economic depression. Economic collapse could lead to a full-scale depression—few jobs and little pay.

Is a recession coming in 2024? ›

In its Global Economic Prospects report in January, the World Bank said risks of a global recession in 2024 had receded thanks to the US economy performing better than expected in 2023.

What happens to my mortgage if the economy collapses? ›

What Happens To Your Mortgage Rates & Payments? If you have a fixed-rate mortgage, then your monthly payments will remain the same, which can be beneficial in a high-inflation environment. However, if you have an adjustable-rate mortgage, expect your payments to increase.

How does a recession affect the average person? ›

Increased stress all around. One of the most prevalent ways that recessions affect the average person is simply that stress goes up. It doesn't matter if you're comfortable in your job security and have a hefty financial cushion, or if you're struggling to make ends meet and have $100 in your savings account.

Did we ever recover from the 2008 recession? ›

Recovery From the Great Recession

Following these policies, the economy gradually recovered. Real GDP bottomed out in the second quarter of 2009 and regained its pre-recession peak in the second quarter of 2011, 3½ years after the initial onset of the official recession.

Is America in financial trouble? ›

The US Department of Treasury building seen in March 2023. US government debt is nearing $35 trillion.

How long did it take for house prices to recover after 2008? ›

Home prices fully recovered by late 2012. If someone bought a house at the very peak of the recession in 2007 and held the property for 5 years, they made money in appreciation after 2012. It took 3.5 years for the recovery to begin after the recession began.

How long did it take the stock market to recover after the 2008 crash? ›

The bounce-back from the 2008 crash took five and a half years, but an additional half year to regain your purchasing power.

Who was most affected by the 2008 housing crisis? ›

The Hit to Minorities

Another commonly held perception is that minority and low-income households bore the brunt of the fallout of the subprime lending crisis. “The problem is that the most vulnerable households to recession are minority and low-income households,” Wachter said.

What industries hit hardest in 2008? ›

Two industries hit hardest by the recession -- financial services and construction -- also are the two industries that arguably were the biggest beneficiaries of the bubble. The financial industry has lost 628,000 jobs.

Who was hit hardest by the Great Recession? ›

Communities of color are also typically hardest hit by recessions and job losses, he said. During the Great Recession, the unemployment rate reached a peak of 10 percent, but the peak for white workers was about 9 percent while the peak for black workers was 16 percent.

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