US central bank releases details of thousands of secret loans to global firms as well as foreign banks and American billionaires
Dominic Rushe
Guardian
The global credit crunch of 2008 ran deeper and wider than previously disclosed, forcing the US government to fund firms including General Electric and Toyota, along with banks and billionaire investors, according to documents released by the Federal Reserve.
Under pressure from politicians, the US central bank has released details of 21,000 transactions it made as the global economy faced meltdown.
As well as its well-publicised support of the banking system, the Fed’s aid reached far beyond Wall Street, offering finance to the motorbike manufacturer Harley-Davidson, the industrial equipment maker Caterpillar, the telecoms company Verizon and even the computer billionaire Michael Dell as it struggled to keep the economy going. The lending reached $3.3tn (£2.1tn) at its peak.
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