Argentina Default 2001

About Argentina Default 2001

Argentina defaulted on 93 billion dollars of debt in December 2001, the largest sovereign default in history at the time. The economy collapsed, with GDP shrinking 11 percent in 2002. Unemployment exceeded 20 percent. The government froze bank accounts, preventing people from accessing their savings. Five presidents served in two weeks. The peso was devalued from 1 to 1 against the dollar to 4 to 1. Argentina recovered surprisingly quickly, growing 8 percent annually from 2003 to 2007. However, Argentina defaulted again in 2014 and 2020. The country has defaulted nine times in its history, more than any other nation.