The dot-com bubble was the speculative bubble whose collapse in 2000 drove the early-2000s stock-market crash.
The bubble centered on internet-related companies, especially firms whose share prices rose rapidly despite limited profits or sometimes no established revenue. Investors expected the commercial internet to transform business, and venture capital, public offerings, and online trading helped channel enormous amounts of money into technology stocks.
The Nasdaq Composite reached a closing peak of 5,048.62 on March 10, 2000. It then fell sharply as investors reassessed valuations, interest rates rose, and many internet companies failed to meet expectations. The decline continued for years, and the Nasdaq lost roughly 78% of its value from peak to trough.
“Dot-com bubble” refers to the speculative boom, while “dot-com crash” usually describes the market collapse that followed. Not every internet company failed: Amazon and a small number of other survivors eventually became major technology businesses.