when did the financial crisis start in 2008
beginning in August 2006
title: Financial crisis of 2007–2008 text: Financial crisis of 2007–2008 The financial crisis of 2007–2008, also known as the global financial crisis and the 2008 financial crisis, is considered by many economists to have been the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression of the 1930s. It began in 2007 with a crisis in the subprime mortgage market in the United States, and developed into a full-blown international banking crisis with the collapse of the investment bank Lehman Brothers on September 15, 2008. Excessive risk-taking by banks such as Lehman Brothers helped to magnify the financial impact globally. Massive bail-outs of financial institutions and other palliative title: Financial crisis of 2007–2008 text: investor confidence affected global stock markets, where securities suffered large losses during 2008 and early 2009. Economies worldwide slowed during this period, as credit tightened and international trade declined. Governments and central banks responded with unprecedented fiscal stimulus, monetary policy expansion and institutional bailouts. In the US, Congress passed the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. Many causes for the financial crisis have been suggested, with varying weight assigned by experts. The immediate cause or trigger of the crisis was the bursting of the US housing bubble, which peaked in 2006/2007. Already-rising default rates on "subprime" and adjustable-rate mortgages title: Financial crisis of 2007–2008 text: subsequent material were adapted from the Wikinfo article Financial crisis of 2007–2008 released under the Financial crisis of 2007–2008 The financial crisis of 2007–2008, also known as the global financial crisis and the 2008 financial crisis, is considered by many economists to have been the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression of the 1930s. It began in 2007 with a crisis in the subprime mortgage market in the United States, and developed into a full-blown international banking crisis with the collapse of the investment bank Lehman Brothers on September 15, 2008. Excessive risk-taking by banks such as Lehman Brothers title: Financial crisis of 2007–2008 text: and prolonged unemployment. The crisis played a significant role in the failure of key businesses, declines in consumer wealth estimated in trillions of US dollars, and a downturn in economic activity leading to the Great Recession of 2008–2012 and contributing to the European sovereign-debt crisis. The active phase of the crisis, which manifested as a liquidity crisis, can be dated from August 9, 2007, when BNP Paribas terminated withdrawals from three hedge funds citing "a complete evaporation of liquidity". The bursting of the US housing bubble, which peaked at the end of 2006, caused the values of securities tied to title: Global financial crisis in September 2008 text: a New York City Bankruptcy court filing. The same day, the sale of Merrill Lynch to Bank of America was announced. The beginning of the week was marked by extreme instability in global stock markets, with dramatic drops in market values on Monday, September 15, and Wednesday, September 17. On September 16, the large insurer American International Group (AIG), a significant participant in the credit default swaps markets, suffered a liquidity crisis following the downgrade of its credit rating. The Federal Reserve, at AIG's request, and after AIG had shown that it could not find lenders willing to save it