The 2000–2002 stock-market crash centered on Internet companies is known as the dot-com crash. It followed the bursting of the dot-com bubble, when investors had pushed technology and online-company valuations to extreme levels.
The technology-heavy Nasdaq Composite peaked at 5,048.62 on March 10, 2000. Many newly listed companies had limited revenue, persistent losses, or business models based mainly on attracting website users. As expectations changed, investors sold heavily and financing became harder to obtain.
The Nasdaq ultimately lost roughly 78% of its value from its peak to its October 2002 low. The crash did not mean that the Internet lacked economic importance; companies with durable technology and sustainable revenues eventually became major businesses. A common mistake is to use “dot-com crash” for the entire 1990s bubble rather than the subsequent market decline.