What was the name of the 1997 currency crisis that began when Thailand let the baht float?

The 1997 currency crisis that began when Thailand let the baht float was the Asian financial crisis.

Thailand abandoned its fixed exchange-rate system on July 2, 1997, allowing the baht to trade more freely after intense pressure on its foreign-exchange reserves. The baht then depreciated sharply. Investors reassessed other economies with high foreign-currency debt, property bubbles, weak banks, or similar exchange-rate arrangements.

The turmoil spread across much of East and Southeast Asia, affecting Indonesia, South Korea, Malaysia, and the Philippines. Stock markets fell, companies struggled to repay dollar-denominated loans, and several governments sought assistance from the International Monetary Fund and other institutions.

The crisis was not simply a stock-market event: it began as a currency and financial-system shock. Hong Kong’s market also suffered a major attack in 1998, but that episode belongs to the broader regional crisis rather than its initial July 1997 trigger.