Att rädda eller att inte rädda bankerna? Hur stat och privat näringsliv samverkade under bankkrisen i Sverige 1991–1995

Abstract

This research aims to examine the crisis management of the Swedish banking crisis in 1991–1995. The study explores the role of the state and how the private sector participated in the crisis management. In the early 1990s, the Swedish banking system faced an unprecedented crisis. When the real estate bubble burst in 1991, the credit losses quickly spread from real estate enterprises to the banking system. When several banks had been reporting problems with their solvency during 1992, the government saw no other option but to provide the Swedish banks with a “blanket guarantee”. In May 1993, a new bank support agency, Bankstödsnämnden, was established to manage the banking aid. As the administration of the public banking aid required experience in crisis management, international consultants from the private sector were hired by Bankstödsnämnden to provide the organization with necessary competence. During 1993–1995, Bankstödsnämnden and private actors worked together on questions regarding public financial aid to banks and the management of enterprises that the state acquired ownership of as a part of the crisis management. The result of this study challenges previous implications that the state's role as “Lender of last resort” was the main reason why the Swedish banking system quickly recovered after the crisis. This research presents evidence that the public collaboration with the private sector was just as important as the “blanket guarantee” during the banking crisis management in the 1990s.