The stock-market collapse that followed the Nasdaq Composite’s March 2000 peak was the dot-com crash.
Internet-related companies attracted intense speculation during the late 1990s. Investors often valued firms on website traffic, projected growth, or the promise of future profits rather than established earnings. Many new companies raised money through initial public offerings, and their shares surged soon after listing.
The Nasdaq Composite reached an intraday peak of 5,132.52 on March 10, 2000. As expectations changed and interest rates rose, technology shares began to fall. The decline spread through the sector, and many internet companies failed when they could no longer obtain financing.
The crash did not mean that the internet itself lacked economic value. Companies with durable business models, including Amazon, eventually became major enterprises, while countless speculative ventures disappeared. The episode is often confused with the 2008 financial crisis: the dot-com crash centered on overvalued technology shares, whereas 2008 was driven mainly by housing, credit, and banking-system problems.