Bank distress was a defining feature of the Great Depression in the United States. Most banks, however, weathered the storm and remained in operation throughout the contraction. We show that surviving banks cut lending when depositors withdrew funds en masse during panics. This panic-induced decline in lending explains about one-third of the reduction in aggregate commercial bank lending between 1929 and 1932, more than twice as much as attributed to the failure of banks.

中文翻译：

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大萧条期间的银行贷款和存款紧缩


银行困境是美国大萧条的一个决定性特征。然而，大多数银行经受住了风暴，并在整个收缩期间继续运营。我们表明，当储户在恐慌期间集体提取资金时，幸存的银行会削减贷款。这种恐慌性引发的贷款下降解释了 1929 年至 1932 年间商业银行贷款总额减少的三分之一左右，是银行倒闭造成的两倍多。