This uncertainty, of course, is one of the trade-offs of a more market-intermediated finance system in which risks are more widely dispersed rather than concentrated in the banking system.
As problems in the subprime mortgage market became more apparent, investors became unwilling to purchase products that could have any exposure not only to subprime mortgages, but to housing-related assets and other structured products more generally. Put simply, investors suddenly realized that they were much less informed than they originally thought.