deleveraging

American  

[dee-lev-er-ij-ing, ‑lee-ver‑] / diˈlɛv ər ɪdʒ ɪŋ, ‑li vər‑ /

noun

1. the act or process of paying off or reducing debt; a decreasing of financial leverage.

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Etymology

Origin of deleveraging

First recorded in 1975–80; de- ( def. ) + leveraging ( def. )

Example Sentences

“With the deleveraging process well advanced and a more flexible capital structure in place, WD retains the ability to continue returning capital while benefiting from durable nearline and AI-driven demand trends,” Daryanani wrote.

From Barron's • Jun. 3, 2026

If there is deleveraging among them at some point, it could shrink the opportunity set that banks are competing over.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 29, 2026

It plans to pause its share buyback program to give priority to deleveraging quickly after the deal and will resume it after making progress, the people familiar with the matter said.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 30, 2026

There’s a clean path for U.S. stocks next month to advance after massive institutional deleveraging, according to a report from Goldman Sachs trading desk team.

From MarketWatch • Mar. 27, 2026

“We are going through the greatest deleveraging in the history of financial services and it’s going to go on and on and on,” he said.

From "The Big Short" by Michael Lewis