The near-collapse of the Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) during the 2008 global financial crisis was triggered by a combination of aggressive, highly leveraged expansion, poor risk management, and the disastrous acquisition of Dutch bank ABN Amro for roughly 71 billion euros at the peak of the market. Funded largely through short-term debt rather than equity, the transaction left the institution severely overextended and vulnerable to a massive liquidity crunch. This forced the UK government to execute the largest banking bailout in history, injecting 45 billion pounds of taxpayer funds to secure a majority public stake and prevent systemic insolvency.