US margin debt hits record $1.5 trillion, raising alarms on Wall Street

FinanceInternationalThe Motley FoolNov 8, 2026, 6:36 AMAI summary

According to FINRA, outstanding margin debt in the United States reached an all-time high of $1.502 trillion in June. The article notes that in the three previous instances when that balance rose at least 65% over a short period — before the dot-com bubble burst, before the financial crisis and after the COVID-19 crash — significant bear markets followed in the S&P 500 and Nasdaq. The text links the current surge to the artificial intelligence and quantum computing boom.

In 35 seconds

FINRA reports a record $1.502 trillion in outstanding margin debt in June
The balance rose 77% over 14 months, between April 2025 and June 2026
The three prior rapid increases coincided with bear markets: dot-com, financial crisis and the post-COVID period

Read the full story at The Motley Fool

IASummary generated by artificial intelligence from a story by The Motley Fool. It may contain errors: the original source prevails.

Wall Street
deuda de margen
FINRA
S&P 500
mercados

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US margin debt hits record $1.5 trillion, raising alarms on Wall Street

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With inflation near 6.5%, Colombia's government would pay a negative real interest rate in 2026

Rose Blumkin, the Nebraska Furniture Mart founder who competed against Berkshire after selling her company

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