A Comparative Analysis of the Greek Financial Crisis and the IMF’s Bailout Programs: An East Asian View

Abstract

This chapter examines the current financial and economic crisis in Greece from a perspective of the East Asian Financial Crisis. It traces some of the distinctive features of the ongoing economic crisis in Greece, comparing them with those of the financial crisis in East Asia in the late 1990s. This comparative analysis of the two crises shows that the aggravation in the Greek economic situation is primarily due to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the Troika’s misguided bailout conditionality, just as the IMF’s failed bailout programs in East Asia severely damaged many East Asian economies. Drawing upon this observation, the chapter proposes a series of reform agendas in the domain of regional and international financial arrangement.