Possible cause could be the rise of debt (the absolute total value of debt) as a major tool in fiscal policy and as a speculative financial instrument. The date

Possible cause could be the rise of debt (the absolute total value of debt) as a major tool in fiscal policy and as a speculative financial instrument. The date where the two lines split on the first chart roughly coincides with the rise of hedge fund industry (see "More money than God" book for reference). I'm not criticising hedge funds per se, but the trend they created in financial instutions at large.