British banks 'profited from Argentina's woes'

["Edward George" <ebgeorge@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

British banks 'profited from Argentina's woes'

Larry Elliott and Jill Treanor

Tuesday January 15, 2002

The Guardian

Two of Britain's leading high streets banks have used excessively high 
interest charges to profit from Argentina's economic woes and colluded with 
the country's political elite to help export $130bn (£90bn) of wealth 
through capital flight, it was claimed last night.

Mario Cafiero, an opposition congressman in the Argentine parliament, 
accused HSBC and Lloyds of exploiting the free market policies of the former 
finance minister, Domingo Cavallo, and called on the Bank of England to 
investigate their activities.

Speaking in London at the launch of a Jubilee Debt Programme campaign to 
introduce an international bankruptcy process for countries, Mr Cafiero 
said: "The winners of the Cavallo model of economics were: the British, 
Spanish, American and German banks who profited from the usurious interest 
rates.

"But wealthy individual Argentines, helped by foreign banks like HSBC and 
Lloyds, have been able over 10 years to export $130bn of wealth through the 
capital flight mechanisms that both foreign and local banks provided.

Full story at:
<http://www.guardian.co.uk/argentina/story/0,11439,633551,00.html>


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