What was the name of the 1997 market collapse that began in Hong Kong and spread across Asia?

The 1997 market collapse that began in Hong Kong and spread across Asia was the Asian financial crisis.

The crisis became acute after Thailand abandoned its fixed exchange rate for the baht in July 1997. Investors then reassessed currencies, banks, companies, and property markets across the region. Capital fled several economies, causing sharp currency devaluations, falling stock prices, corporate failures, and banking stress.

Indonesia, South Korea, and Thailand were among the countries most severely affected. Hong Kong’s markets also came under intense pressure in October 1997, while the Hong Kong dollar’s peg to the U.S. dollar was defended. The International Monetary Fund arranged major assistance programs for several countries, often tied to financial and economic reforms.

The crisis was not simply a stock-market event. Currency mismatches, short-term foreign borrowing, weak financial supervision, and property speculation all mattered. Russia’s 1998 default and financial turmoil elsewhere followed, but those events were later developments rather than the original Asian crisis.