Some might attribute the ongoing meme stock phenomenon to retail fervor or options hedging by market makers—but what if there's more to the fad? If meme stocks are here to stay, Lily Francus, director of quant research strategy at Moody's Analytics, argues that it may be time to reevaluate the way investors approach corporate credit risk. She walks through two case studies of this year's favorite meme stocks, GameStop Corporation and AMC Entertainment Holdings, and how their short squeezes earlier in 2021 have materially changed their fates as companies on the verge of debt default and bankruptcy. Interviewed by veteran financial journalist Maggie Lake.