The Resolution Trust Corporation (RTC) was an independent government agency created in 1989 as part of the Financial Institutions Reform, Recovery and Enforcement Act (FIRREA) to help manage the savings and loan crisis. The RTC was created to help assess the financial troubles of S&Ls and implement a plan to resolve the situation.

The RTC is best known for its role in taking over and attempting to liquidate failed S&Ls. The agency had control of around 750 S&Ls, representing about 30 percent of all S&L assets in the United States. The RTC acted as a receiver for the failed S&Ls, managing the complex liquidation process and selling assets to attempt to recover what was owed. Assets sold included bonds, mortgages and real estate. The RTC also took responsibility for managing troubled S&Ls, attempting to help them become viable again.

The RTC moved quickly as an operating branch, assuming control of failed S&Ls just days after the crisis was recognized. The RTC also played an important role in the judicial process, with its attorneys representing the government in legal proceedings around the S&L crisis. In most cases, the government won, including some high profile cases that went to the Supreme Court.

The agency had other roles beyond managing and liquidating failed S&Ls. It took on a broader role in assisting the housing industry and supporting financial institutions in trouble. This included providing emergency financial assistance to financially troubled S&Ls, as well as helping borrowers in trouble get loan modifications. It also held public auctions to liquidate S&L assets, created programs to help S&Ls issue new bonds, offering loan guarantees and providing grants to subsidize affordable housing initiatives.

The RTC has been credited with playing a key role in resolving the savings and loan crisis. It clawed back more than $20 billion of the estimated $150 billion lost by the collapse of S&Ls. The agency was also praised for its ability to act quickly and efficiently in recovering assets.

In April 1995, the house voted to close the RTC and it was officially disbanded in December 1995. The RTC was eventually replaced by the Office of Thrift Supervision (OTS), which assumed responsibility for supervising the remaining thrifst, as well as administering the Resolution Fund which the RTC had been responsible for managing.

Overall, the RTC was a major player in helping the US Government both manage and resolve the S&L crisis. The RTC assisted in reaching settlements with individuals and organizations that were responsible for the crisis, managed to reduce the losses of the crisis, and supported the housing industry by providing financial assistance and sponsoring affordable housing initiatives. It was a major government agency that operated quickly and efficiently to help resolve and manage the savings and loan crisis and shape the future of the US financial sector.