What date is known as Black Wednesday, when Britain's pound crashed out of the ERM?

September 16, 1992, is known as Black Wednesday, when Britain’s pound crashed out of the ERM.

The United Kingdom joined the European Exchange Rate Mechanism in 1990 and agreed to keep the pound within a specified band against other European currencies. By 1992, high British interest rates, recession, and pressure on the pound made that commitment increasingly difficult to defend.

On September 16, the government raised interest rates and announced further measures to support sterling, but traders continued selling the currency. Britain suspended the pound’s ERM membership that day. The event was a currency-market crisis with major consequences for financial markets and economic policy, rather than a conventional share-price crash.

Black Wednesday is often associated with hedge-fund manager George Soros, whose fund reportedly made a large profit betting against sterling. However, many market participants were involved, and the episode reflected broader tensions in the ERM. Britain later adopted a floating exchange rate.