The Crash Pattern

Every market crash in history follows roughly the same script. First: euphoria. Everyone is making money, skeptics look foolish, and "this time is different" becomes the rallying cry.

Then: a trigger. Never the same twice, but the ingredients are — excessive leverage, overvaluation, and blind confidence.

Then: panic selling. Fear is faster than greed. Markets take years to climb and weeks to fall. The S&P 500 lost 34% in 23 trading days during the COVID crash of March 2020. The 2008 crash erased $17 trillion in household wealth.