Here are two brilliant videos from Paddy Hirsch, Senior Editor of Marketplace in the US. He has made a name for himself for producing some of the most insightful, and easy to understand explanations about what is going on in the world financial markets. If you ever wondered why the Greek banking crisis is such a big deal for us all, and what caused it, then these are well worth a watch.
Who or what are PIIGS? Why are they a problem?
Portugal, Ireland, Italy, Greece, Spain are the naughty PIIGS.
The big bad wolf for those poor little PIIGS, (Actually they have just borrowed too much), is counterparty risk.
So now you know. Thanks Paddy.