Global Financial Crisis

Welcome to Finance Watch’s timeline of the global financial crisis. To travel through the banking storm, roll your mouse forward (or tap to scroll on some Apple devices).

In the four months after Lehman Brothers collapsed, around 30 other banks in Europe and the US had to be rescued.;xNLx;A month earlier, economist [Nouriel Roubini predicted](http://online.barrons.com/article/SB121763156934206007.html?mod=9_0031_b_this_weeks_magazine_main#articleTabs_article%3D1) “this financial crisis will lead to credit losses of at least $1 trillion and most likely closer to $2 trillion. When I made this analysis in February everybody thought I was a lunatic.”;xNLx;Since then, studies estimate the cost of this crisis to the public at €1.3 trillion for Europe to $13.2 trillion for the US, including lost output. ;xNLx;This is equivalent to 139 Hurricane Katrinas, 72 Tohoku tsunamis or more than 3 times the amount spent by the US on fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan. ;xNLx;Five years after Lehmans, the banking system has still not been fundamentally reformed. ;xNLx;Timeline created by [Finance Watch](http://www.finance-watch.org), with special thanks to Caroline Metz and Iacopo Levenheck.;xNLx;

2008-09-01 12:29:43

Commerzbank buys ailing Dresdner

Commerzbank agrees to buy most of Dresdner Bank from insurer Allianz in a €9.8bn deal.

2008-09-07 14:16:21

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac placed under FHFA conservatorship

US government to take control of Fannie and Freddie, after the largest wave of mortgage defaults in the last 30 years threatened to capsize the firms representing over half the US mortgage market.

2008-09-14 10:39:28

Northern Rock first bailout anniversary

Northern Rock collapsed on 14 September 2007, a year and a day before collapse of Lehman Brothers.

2008-09-15 01:01:01

Lehman Brothers collapses

The first big domino to fall, triggering a market panic with its losses of USD 13.8bn.

2008-09-15 01:01:01

Merrill Lynch sold to Bank of America

Merrill Lynch & Co. agrees to sell itself to Bank of America Corp. for $50 billion.

2008-09-16 01:01:01

AIG bailed out

AIG receives $85 billion secured revolving credit facility from the New York Fed in exchange for a stake of 79.9%, secured by a pledge of a substantial portion of AIG’s assets.

2008-09-18 18:08:03

HBOS merges with LloydsTSB

HBOS is merged into LloydsTSB in a rescue deal brokered by the UK government, after wild fluctuations in HBOS shares and heated rumours of short selling. HBOS later admitted to £30 billion of losses.

2008-09-26 01:01:01

Washington Mutual sold to JPMorganChase

JPMorganChase pays $1.9 billion for the deposits and branches of WaMu, a lender with $310 billion in assets.

2008-09-28 08:39:39

Hypo Real Estate nationalised

As Hypo Real Estate faces a liquidity crisis, the German federal government and a group of private banks discuss a 35 billion euro ($50 billion) guarantee. Hypo Real Estate (HRE) is nationalised in October 2009.

2008-09-29 01:01:01

Fortis dismantled

The banking activities of the Fortis groups are rescued in a EUR 24.7bn series of deals involving the Belgian, Dutch and Luxembourg governments and BNP Paribas.

2008-09-29 08:08:59

Iceland's Glitnir nationalised

The government has bought a 75% stake in the third-largest bank in the country. This is the first Icelandic nationalization of the current crisis.

2008-09-29 18:08:03

Bradford & Bingley nationalised

Bradford & Bingley, the UK mortgage lender, was one of four bank rescues to be announced around the world on Monday morning (the others were Wachovia, Fortis and Glitnir).

2008-09-29 20:16:09

Wachovia takeover follows bid battle and massive losses

Wells Fargo beat Citigroup to buy the ailing bank Wachovia, which later announced a $23.9 billion third-quarter loss.

2008-09-30 01:01:01

Dexia recapitalised

Franco-Belgium bank receives €6.4bn in emergency capital from France, Belgium and Luxembourg

2008-10-03 01:01:01

US approves TARP

The US Senate passes an unpredented $700 billion bailout bill in order to rescue the US financial system.

2008-10-06 00:46:29

Denmark guarantees all bank deposits

The latest EU country to boost the stability of its financial markets, Denmark guaranteed all bank deposits in a $6.4bn deal to be funded by the country's commercial lenders.

2008-10-08 07:04:54

Austria guarantees all deposits, stops short selling

Searching to restore confidence in banks and markets, Austria announces unlimited guarantees on bank deposits and a plan to prohibit short selling.

2008-10-08 09:05:20

Major central banks cut their interest rates

In a coordinated effort to halt a collapse of share prices and a freeze in credit markets, six major central banks lowered their interest rates.

2008-10-08 09:05:20

CNCE and BFBP to merge after Natixis losses

Two of the largest French banks are discussing a merger, as the credit crisis encourages consolidation in the European financial sector.

2008-10-12 10:39:28

EU-wide commitment to rescue financial system

Germany, France, Italy and 12 others states unveil a "comprehensive" bailout plan worth €1.3 trillion for rescuing their banking systems.

2008-10-15 08:08:59

Iceland cuts key interest rate to 12%

Iceland cuts the benchmark interest rate by 3.5 percentage points in an attempt to prevent a prolonged recession.

2008-10-16 17:09:40

UBS in $59.2 Billion Bailout

Switzerland's biggest bank was forced into a $59.2 billion government bailout after piling up huge losses.

2008-10-19 23:36:02

ING gets €10 billion bail-out

The biggest Dutch financial-services firm gets €10 billion ($13.4 billion) from the State after falling the most in Amsterdam trading since 1991.

2008-10-20 06:31:09

Sweden launches financial rescue package

Sweden is the latest country to launch a financial rescue package, offering €137bn in bank loan guarantees.

2008-10-20 09:05:20

Ethias Group capital injection

Belgian authorities agree to €1.5 billion capital injection.

2008-11-03 06:03:40

Commerzbank €8.2 bailout

Berlin agreed to inject €8.2bn of capital from the state bailout fund into Commerzbank, Germany’s second largest bank, and to provide state guarantees for €15bn of debt issuance.

2008-11-12 23:00:38

Barclays fundraising in Qatar

Barclay's plan to avoid risking a state bailout by raising £7bn private capital in Qatar and Abu Dhabi angers its largest shareholders and leads to a lengthy regulatory investigation.

2008-11-20 08:04:38

RBS issues sweeping apology to shareholders

At an exceptional shareholders meeting to sanction a £20bn fundraising, Sir Tom McKillop, outgoing Chairman of RBS, took personal responsibility for the implosion of the Edinburgh-based banking giant.

2008-11-23 01:01:01

Citigroup bailed out

Citigroup Inc. receives a $20 billion rescue package from the US government.

2008-11-26 16:31:09

Glitnir files for bankruptcy in US court

The bank, taken over by Iceland's Financial Supervisory Authority last month as the global financial crisis took its toll on the country, filed a Chapter 15 bankruptcy protection in the US Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York.

2008-11-28 04:57:08

RBS Nationalized

Royal Bank of Scotland Plc sells the British government almost £20bn of stock, giving it a 58% stake in the Bank.

2008-11-28 12:29:43

Commerzbank restructures Dresdner takeover

Commerzbank accelerated the takeover of Dresdner Bank in exchange of a larger cash payment to Allianz, the owner. The merger may happen six months earlier than planned.

2008-11-28 12:29:43

WestLB seeks government rescue

German regional Landesbank, West LB, is the latest credit institution hit by the financial crisis to seek a government bailout.

2008-11-29 06:47:25

BayernLB seeks huge bailout

One month after demanding an initial €6.4bn bailout, German regional bank Bayern LB seeks an additional €30bn bailout from public authorities. The bank is the first to tap into Chancellor Merkel's €480bn banking rescue package.

2008-12-01 23:36:02

KBC recapitalised

The Belgian federal government decides to recapitalise KBC Group N.V. with €3.5 billion.

2008-12-09 16:31:09

Landsbanki enters US bankruptcy

The bank, under government control since October, filed for bankruptcy protection in US courts.

2008-12-11 13:30:47

Bank of America to cut up to 35,000 jobs

Bank of America announced a plan to cut up to 35,000 jobs over the next three years following its merger with Merrill Lynch and diminished business activity due to the recession.

2008-12-19 00:57:24

Latvia secures €7.5bn in IMF, EU Loans

Latvia entered the grim world of “bailout austerity” after receiving a €7.5 bn loan from the IMF and others after its economy contracted 4.6% in the third quarter its second largest bank had to be nationalized.

2009-01-14 00:55:52

Greek debt rating cut to A- by S&P

Citing the country's weakening finances amid the global economic turbulence, the credit rating agency cut hellenic bonds' rating to A-. Spain and Portugal may be next in the line.

2009-01-16 23:36:02

Anglo Irish bank nationalised

The Irish government seizes control of the bank in the wake of a loan scandal that forced the resignations of its chief executives.

2009-01-19 05:23:39

S&P strips Spain of its AAA rating

Spain is the first top-rated country to be stripped of its AAA, reflecting the deep impact of the global financial crisis on the country's economy.

2009-01-20 06:23:39

Roubini predicts crisis losses may reach $3.6 Tr

And if that figure proves to be correct, "the U.S. banking system is effectively insolvent", said NYU professor at conference today in Dubai.

2009-01-21 07:14:16

S&P cuts Portugal's debt rating from AA- to A+

Fifth in the scale, the A+ rating puts Portugal on a par with Cyprus and Chile. This is the third euro-area downgrade in a week.

2009-01-21 14:16:21

Greece's borrowing costs soar in first bond sale since s&p downgrade

Greece's borrowing costs have soared in the first bond sale since S&P downgraded the country to an A-, making it the lowest-rated in the eurozone.

Global Financial Crisis

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