What is the European Debt Crisis?

Although these five were seen as being the countries in immediate danger of a possible default, the crisis has far-reaching consequences that extend beyond their borders to the world as a whole. In fact, the head of the Bank of England referred to it as “the most serious financial crisis at least since the 1930s, if not ever,” in October 2011.This is one of most important problems facing the world economy, but it is also one of the hardest to understand. Below is a Q&A to help familiarize you with the basics of this critical issue.