Charles Dallara on the Greek debt crisis and restructuring

Charles was previously the managing director of the Institute of International Finance. He was also managing director at J.P Morgan & Co and held senior positions in the U.S. Department of the Treasury and International Monetary Fund.

In the autumn of 2009, the world economy was beginning to recover from the global financial crisis that had shaken global markets and had led to a sharp recession. At the same time, Europe was entering a new phase of economic stress. By the spring of 2011, the European economy had exploded into a full-blown crisis with Greece at the centre. The euro, a currency just over a decade old, was under severe pressure and there was growing speculation about Greece leaving the Eurozone and thereby fracturing the common currency, leading potentially to an unraveling of the euro. Against this backdrop, urgent negotiations were launched to pull Greece and Europe back from the brink of disaster. Charles was at the centre of these momentous events.