A crise financeira e a evolução do sistema bancário

The aim of this article is to describe the new stage of development of the banking system whose dynamics led to the global financial crisis of 2008. The main feature of this stage, which emerged on the threshold of the 21st century, is the inextricable interpenetration between the balance sheets of the banking system and the so-called Shadow Banking System (SBS), which was made possible by a set of financial innovations traded on the over-the-counter (OTC) markets. Such configuration, by multiplying and globally redistributing the risks present in the system to a variety of financial institutions, was responsible for the transformation of a classic credit crunch - wherein the sum of potential losses corresponding to loans with low collateral is known -, into a systemic financial crisis in the international arena.