IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/p/ehl/lserod/128657.html
   My bibliography  Save this paper

Artificial intelligence and financial crises

Author

Listed:
  • Danielsson, Jon
  • Uthemann, Andreas

Abstract

The rapid adoption of artificial intelligence (AI) poses new and poorly understood threats to financial stability. We use a game-theoretic model to analyse the stability impact of AI, finding that it amplifies existing financial system vulnerabilities — leverage, liquidity stress and opacity — through superior information processing, common data, speed and strategic complementarities. The consequence is crises become faster and more severe, where the likelihood of a crisis is directly affected by how effectively the authorities engage with AI. In response, we propose that the financial authorities develop their own AI systems and expertise, establish direct AI-to-AI communication, implement automated crisis facilities and monitor AI use.

Suggested Citation

  • Danielsson, Jon & Uthemann, Andreas, 2025. "Artificial intelligence and financial crises," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 128657, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
  • Handle: RePEc:ehl:lserod:128657
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://eprints.lse.ac.uk/128657/
    File Function: Open access version.
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    Other versions of this item:

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Morris, Stephen & Shin, Hyun Song, 1998. "Unique Equilibrium in a Model of Self-Fulfilling Currency Attacks," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 88(3), pages 587-597, June.
    2. Isabel Schnabel & Hyun Song Shin, 2004. "Liquidity and Contagion: The Crisis of 1763," Journal of the European Economic Association, MIT Press, vol. 2(6), pages 929-968, December.
    3. Khandani, Amir E. & Lo, Andrew W., 2011. "What happened to the quants in August 2007? Evidence from factors and transactions data," Journal of Financial Markets, Elsevier, vol. 14(1), pages 1-46, February.
    4. Jeremy Fouliard & Michael Howell & Hélène Rey & Vania Stavrakeva, 2020. "Answering the Queen: Machine Learning and Financial Crises," NBER Working Papers 28302, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    5. Aldasoro, I. & Gambacorta, L. & Korinek, A. & Shreeti, V. & Stein, M., 2025. "Intelligent financial system: How AI is transforming finance," Journal of Financial Stability, Elsevier, vol. 81(C).
    6. József Sákovics & Jakub Steiner, 2012. "Who Matters in Coordination Problems?," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 102(7), pages 3439-3461, December.
    7. Regis Barnichon & Christian Matthes & Alexander Ziegenbein, 2022. "Are the Effects of Financial Market Disruptions Big or Small?," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 104(3), pages 557-570, May.
    8. Lubos Pástor & Pietro Veronesi, 2012. "Uncertainty about Government Policy and Stock Prices," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 67(4), pages 1219-1264, August.
    9. Gennotte, Gerard & Leland, Hayne, 1990. "Market Liquidity, Hedging, and Crashes," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 80(5), pages 999-1021, December.
    10. Emilio Calvano & Giacomo Calzolari & Vincenzo Denicolò & Sergio Pastorello, 2020. "Artificial Intelligence, Algorithmic Pricing, and Collusion," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 110(10), pages 3267-3297, October.
    11. Andrei Kirilenko & Albert S. Kyle & Mehrdad Samadi & Tugkan Tuzun, 2017. "The Flash Crash: High-Frequency Trading in an Electronic Market," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 72(3), pages 967-998, June.
    12. Daníelsson, Jón & Macrae, Robert & Uthemann, Andreas, 2022. "Artificial intelligence and systemic risk," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 140(C).
    13. Allen, Franklin & Gale, Douglas, 1994. "Limited Market Participation and Volatility of Asset Prices," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 84(4), pages 933-955, September.
    14. Brogaard, Jonathan & Carrion, Allen & Moyaert, Thibaut & Riordan, Ryan & Shkilko, Andriy & Sokolov, Konstantin, 2018. "High frequency trading and extreme price movements," Journal of Financial Economics, Elsevier, vol. 128(2), pages 253-265.
    15. Nicholas Bloom, 2009. "The Impact of Uncertainty Shocks," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 77(3), pages 623-685, May.
    16. Mr. Luc Laeven & Mr. Fabian Valencia, 2018. "Systemic Banking Crises Revisited," IMF Working Papers 2018/206, International Monetary Fund.
    17. Sims, Christopher A, 1980. "Macroeconomics and Reality," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 48(1), pages 1-48, January.
    18. Hellwig, Christian, 2002. "Public Information, Private Information, and the Multiplicity of Equilibria in Coordination Games," Journal of Economic Theory, Elsevier, vol. 107(2), pages 191-222, December.
    19. Chris Edmond, 2013. "Information Manipulation, Coordination, and Regime Change," The Review of Economic Studies, Review of Economic Studies Ltd, vol. 80(4), pages 1422-1458.
    20. Mariarosaria Comunale & Andrea Manera, 2024. "The Economic Impacts and the Regulation of AI: A Review of the Academic Literature and Policy Actions," IMF Working Papers 2024/065, International Monetary Fund.
    21. Pistor, Katharina, 2013. "A legal theory of finance," Journal of Comparative Economics, Elsevier, vol. 41(2), pages 315-330.
    22. Jon Danielsson & Hyun Song Shin & Jean-Pierre Zigrand, 2012. "Endogenous Extreme Events and the Dual Role of Prices," Annual Review of Economics, Annual Reviews, vol. 4(1), pages 111-129, July.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Jon Danielsson & Andreas Uthemann, 2023. "On the use of artificial intelligence in financial regulations and the impact on financial stability," Papers 2310.11293, arXiv.org, revised Jun 2024.
    2. Angeletos, G.-M. & Lian, C., 2016. "Incomplete Information in Macroeconomics," Handbook of Macroeconomics, in: J. B. Taylor & Harald Uhlig (ed.), Handbook of Macroeconomics, edition 1, volume 2, chapter 0, pages 1065-1240, Elsevier.
    3. Liao, Xiaoye & Szkup, Michal, 0. "Coordination with sequential information acquisition," Theoretical Economics, Econometric Society.
    4. Szkup, Michal, 2020. "Multiplier effect and comparative statics in global games of regime change," Theoretical Economics, Econometric Society, vol. 15(2), May.
    5. Daníelsson, Jón & Macrae, Robert & Uthemann, Andreas, 2022. "Artificial intelligence and systemic risk," Journal of Banking & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 140(C).
    6. Xuewen Liu, 2023. "A Model of Systemic Bank Runs," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 78(2), pages 731-793, April.
    7. Kováč, Eugen & Steiner, Jakub, 2013. "Reversibility in dynamic coordination problems," Games and Economic Behavior, Elsevier, vol. 77(1), pages 298-320.
    8. Assaf Razin & Itay Goldstein, 2012. "Review Of Theories of Financial Crises," 2012 Meeting Papers 214, Society for Economic Dynamics.
    9. Georgy Lukyanov & Anastasia Makhmudova, 2025. "Public Communication in Regime Change games," Papers 2509.04749, arXiv.org, revised Nov 2025.
    10. Szkup, Michal & Trevino, Isabel, 2015. "Information acquisition in global games of regime change," Journal of Economic Theory, Elsevier, vol. 160(C), pages 387-428.
    11. George-Marios Angeletos & Chen Lian, 2016. "Incomplete Information in Macroeconomics: Accommodating Frictions in Coordination," NBER Working Papers 22297, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    12. Chow Sheung-Chi & Cunado Juncal & Gupta Rangan & Wong Wing-Keung, 2018. "Causal relationships between economic policy uncertainty and housing market returns in China and India: evidence from linear and nonlinear panel and time series models," Studies in Nonlinear Dynamics & Econometrics, De Gruyter, vol. 22(2), pages 1-15, April.
    13. Jón Daníelsson & Jean-Pierre Zigrand, 2008. "Equilibrium asset pricing with systemic risk," Economic Theory, Springer;Society for the Advancement of Economic Theory (SAET), vol. 35(2), pages 293-319, May.
    14. Antonakakis, Nikolaos & Chatziantoniou, Ioannis & Filis, George, 2014. "Dynamic Spillovers of Oil Price Shocks and Policy Uncertainty," Department of Economics Working Paper Series 166, WU Vienna University of Economics and Business.
    15. Aleh Tsyvinski & Arijit Mukherji & Christian Hellwig, 2006. "Self-Fulfilling Currency Crises: The Role of Interest Rates," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 96(5), pages 1769-1787, December.
    16. Chun, Dohyun & Cho, Hoon & Ryu, Doojin, 2023. "Discovering the drivers of stock market volatility in a data-rich world," Journal of International Financial Markets, Institutions and Money, Elsevier, vol. 82(C).
    17. de Martí, Joan & Milán, Pau, 2019. "Regime change in large information networks," Games and Economic Behavior, Elsevier, vol. 113(C), pages 262-284.
    18. Nong, Huifu, 2021. "Have cross-category spillovers of economic policy uncertainty changed during the US–China trade war?," Journal of Asian Economics, Elsevier, vol. 74(C).
    19. Bernardo Guimaraes & Caio Machado & Marcel Ribeiro, 2016. "A Model of the Confidence Channel of Fiscal Policy," Journal of Money, Credit and Banking, Blackwell Publishing, vol. 48(7), pages 1363-1395, October.
    20. Kemal Kivanç Aköz & Pablo Hernández‐Lagos, 2019. "Rents from power for a dissident elite and mass mobilization," Scottish Journal of Political Economy, Scottish Economic Society, vol. 66(4), pages 584-604, September.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    ;
    ;
    ;

    JEL classification:

    • F3 - International Economics - - International Finance
    • G3 - Financial Economics - - Corporate Finance and Governance

    NEP fields

    This paper has been announced in the following NEP Reports:

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:ehl:lserod:128657. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: LSERO Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/lsepsuk.html .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.