human
I've been hearing a lot about the 'financial crisis'. What happened?
assistant
The financial crisis was caused by a combination of factors, including the collapse of the housing market, the subprime mortgage crisis, and the recession. It began in 2007 and lasted until 2009. During that time, banks were unable to lend money because they didn't know how much risk they were taking on. This led to a sharp decrease in economic activity, which resulted in unemployment rates rising and people losing their homes.