Interest rates followed a downward trend overall throughout the 80s and 90s, with a few brief spikes and a 5% plateau between 1995-2000. We started the 80s with

Interest rates followed a downward trend overall throughout the 80s and 90s, with a few brief spikes and a 5% plateau between 1995-2000. We started the 80s with sky high rates from the Volcker inflation era. Ultimately, interest rates halved, from around 10% to around 5%, during this period. By contrast, interest rates went from 0.1% to 5.5% in the past 18 months. Even if you add the prime rate, the cost of capital tripled, from around 3% to around 9%. That's an unprecedented financial shock for pre-revenue companies.