The Dominican Republic has made great strides in restoring public confidence in the country’s banking system. The 2003 banking crisis was almost a textbook case in rampant embezzlement, fraud and mismanagement, all coming together to bring about the collapse of Banco Intercontinental (Baninter), the country’s third largest bank.
This sparked a huge increase in the quasi-fiscal debt, sustained depreciation of the Dominican peso, sharp increases in the cost of living, and stagnation of salaries while jobs were being lost. Two large insurance companies were de-capitalised and went under in this period.
