Credit Creaks into Gear

Wall Street's great credit machine, which once provided more than $2.5 trillion to consumers and fueled a long economic expansion, stalled when Lehman Brothers failed in September 2008. But this giant financial engine, known as the shadow banking system, may be sputtering back into gear. With traditional bank lending contracting, any new money from private investors should help get the economy moving.

The difference now is that the government is supplying much of the grease to get these markets running. That's not likely to change anytime soon: For the foreseeable future, the feds will be a fundamental part of the new credit reality.