Why did the stock market crash in 1929?
Roosevelt closed all the banks in the United States for three days – a “bank holiday.” Some banks were then cautiously re-opened with strict limits on withdrawals. Eventually, confidence returned to the system and banks were able to perform their economic function again. To prevent similar disasters, the federal government set up the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, which eliminated the rationale for bank “runs” – to get one’s money before the bank “runs out.” Backed by the FDIC, the bank could fail and go out of business, but then the government would reimburse depositors. Another crucial mechanism insulated commercial banks from stock market panics by banning banks from investing depositors’ money in stocks. ( SOURCE PBS.
