Financial disruptions in 2008 contributed to the deep economic downturn that came to be known as the Great Recession. Could current bank failures similarly lead to a recession? The $532 billion of assets of the three banks that failed in March and April 2023 exceed the inflation-adjusted value of $526 billion of assets of the 25 banks that failed in 2008. Furthermore, there are concerns that the crisis may not be contained and other mid-sized banks could also fail. However, the current situation differs in many ways from the underlying economic circumstances at the outset of the Great Recession. Still, that ... (full story)