The 1907 U.S. financial panic triggered by failed speculation in United Copper shares was the Panic of 1907.
The episode began when F. Augustus Heinze and associates tried to corner United Copper Company stock. When the scheme failed in October 1907, depositors rushed to withdraw money from banks connected with Heinze and his associates. The withdrawals spread to trust companies, which were less tightly regulated than commercial banks.
The crisis became especially severe after the Knickerbocker Trust Company failed on October 22, 1907. J. Pierpont Morgan organized private lenders and persuaded banks to provide emergency support. The New York Stock Exchange also received temporary financial assistance to keep trading operating.
The panic exposed weaknesses in the U.S. banking system, which lacked a central bank. Its aftermath helped inspire the creation of the Federal Reserve System in 1913. It is sometimes confused with the separate Panic of 1893, another major U.S. financial crisis.