Which 1997 Thai stock-market crash helped launch the Asian financial crisis?

The collapse of the Thai baht peg helped launch the Asian financial crisis and Thailand’s 1997 stock-market crash.

On July 2, 1997, Thailand abandoned its fixed exchange-rate arrangement and allowed the baht to float. The currency then fell sharply. Investors had become concerned about Thailand’s current-account deficit, high foreign-currency debt, weak financial companies, and property-market excesses. Pressure intensified when the central bank could no longer defend the peg effectively.

The currency crisis quickly affected Thai banks, companies, and equity prices. Contagion then spread across East and Southeast Asia, affecting Indonesia, South Korea, Malaysia, and other markets. The International Monetary Fund arranged a rescue program for Thailand, conditional on economic and financial reforms.

The baht event is sometimes confused with the broader Asian financial crisis. The crisis lasted for years and involved several countries, but the Thai devaluation is commonly identified as its starting point. This question also differs from asking about a particular later stock-market trading day: the answer is the breakdown of the exchange-rate peg.