In the spring of 2021, Archegos Capital Management, a seemingly obscure investment firm, made headlines for its sudden and catastrophic collapse, leaving major Wall Street banks facing staggering losses of billions of dollars.

The firm, led by its founder and CEO, Bill Hwang, will now face trial for alleged racketeering, conspiracy, and fraud charges in a Manhattan courtroom.

Archegos was accused of employing deceptive tactics, such as using financial instruments known as “total return swaps,” to artificially inflate the value of certain stocks, including Viacom and Discovery. While technically legal, these practices are highly risky and controversial.

Prosecutors claim that Hwang and his team misled banks about their positions and used swaps to evade regulatory scrutiny while building massive portfolios.

Initially successful, Archegos’s fortunes took a nosedive when the stock prices plummeted, triggering demands from banks for more collateral to cover losses, CNN has reported.

Unable to meet these demands, Archegos faced liquidation, causing further stock price declines and leaving banks with substantial losses.

Credit Suisse, among others, suffered a significant blow, taking a $5.5 billion hit on its loans to Archegos.

The aftermath of Archegos’s collapse saw the obliteration of over $100 billion in market value across multiple companies, with media giant Viacom bearing a particularly heavy loss, losing more than half of its value in just one week.

Written by B.C. Begley