As we know all too well, the COVID-19 pandemic caught the world off-guard. The virus continues to accumulate a staggering list of victims, but the direct threat to public health also carried with it shock waves that rocked the global economy.
In the spring of 2020, as the COVID-19 pandemic shut down economies around the world, pressure arose for governments to respond to the growing threat of pandemic-related market distress. In addition to responding to the direct public health emergency, governments were expected to stabilize markets—both financial and economic—and provide relief to those harmed by the pandemic’s market effects.
