Black Swan Down

What is a Black Swan?

A black swan is an unpredictable event such as: economic collapse, disease outbreak, nuclear attack, natural disaster, cyber attack, power grid failure, or EMP, all of which have severe consequences.

These events are characterized by their extreme rarity, unpredictability, and dire impact across every facet of life. The term was popularized by finance professor Nassim Nicholas Taleb who wrote about the idea of a black swan event in his 2007 book prior to the 2008 financial crisis.

Sample Risk Impact Assessment

Financial Impact

40%

Infrastructure Impact

80%

Medical Impact

55%

Mobility Impact

75%

Who We Are

Founded to bring next-generation design patterns, hardware, and training, we design tailored solutions to address your fears, values, and motivations for disaster preparedness. Preparing both personal households and commercial enterprises with continuity strategies, we specialize in building bespoke risk management and mitigation plans around black swan events.

Previous Black Swan Events

1997 | Asian Financial Crisis

A series of currency devaluations that spread throughout several Asian markets, starting when Thailand unpegged the baht to the US dollar. As a result of the ensuing crisis, Asian currencies dropped by as much as 38% and international stocks declined by nearly 60%.

2000 | The “Dotcom” Crash

From 2000 to 2002, several internet companies crashed, resulting in significant losses for investors. The dotcom crash wiped out nearly a trillion dollars worth of stock value. The NASDAQ Composite lost 78% of its value in the dotcom crash.

2001 | 9/11

The attack on the Twin Towers of New York’s World Trade Center prompted the closure of the NYSE and NASDAQ on the morning of September 11, 2001. Stocks plummeted during the first trading week after 9/11 – $1.4 trillion in stock market value was lost within a week.

2008 | Global Financial Crisis

The global financial crisis in 2008 caused Lehman Brothers to file for bankruptcy – the largest bankruptcy filing in US history. Over 25,000 Lehman employees went jobless and more than $46 billion of Lehman’s market value was wiped out. In total, over $10 trillion was eventually wiped out in the global equity markets.

2020 | Coronavirus COVID-19

A new type of virus that is dismantling social systems that drive economies, laying havoc to travel and entertainment industries, and creating never before seen strain on health care systems and supply chains.

Customer Solution Portfolios

Homes

Learn about acquiring capabilities and solutions for insuring domestic sustainability during a crisis

Enterprise

Learn about extensibility and dynamic scalability solutions for commercial enterprises

Mutual Assistance Groups

Learn how we equip MAGs with new tools and protocols for disasters

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