The Wall Street Journal reported that top financial leaders met with president Barack Obama and his economic team, warning that a protracted battle over the nation’s ability to fund itself and pay its bills would have serious economic ramifications.

According to the Journal, the executives told the president that even the possibility of the U.S. defaulting on its debt, should policy makers fail to raise the ceiling on the nation’s borrowing, would derail the nascent recovery and cause economic harm.

The Journal said, according to people familiar with the meeting, the executives stressed to the president the importance of Main Street understanding the economic ramifications of a default well before the U.S. runs out of borrowing authority.

To read the Wall Street Journal story click here.