What was the name of the 1997 crisis in which Asian stock markets plunged across the region?

The 1997 crisis in which Asian stock markets plunged across the region was the Asian financial crisis.

The crisis began in Thailand in 1997 and spread through several Asian economies, including Indonesia, South Korea, Malaysia, and the Philippines. Currency pressure, foreign-currency debt, fragile banking systems, and investor panic combined to produce steep exchange-rate and equity-market declines.

The crisis also exposed how quickly financial stress could cross borders. As investors withdrew capital from one market, they reassessed other economies with similar vulnerabilities. International institutions, including the International Monetary Fund, arranged assistance programs for several affected countries.

The crisis is sometimes called the Asian currency crisis because exchange-rate collapses were central to it, but its effects extended well beyond currencies. Stock markets, banks, companies, employment, and economic output were all affected. It should not be confused with the 1998 Russian crisis, which followed the Asian turmoil and had its own default and devaluation episode.