The low interest rate regime fueled a boom in mortgages, including among borrowers with doubtful credit histories or those fancifully called NINJA loans – that is, loans to No Income, No Job or Assets loans. Thus, house prices in the US began rising in 2000, surpassing the growth of disposable income.
During the crisis, some international banks turned out to be fair-weather friends, downsizing, retrenching, or even closing when African economies were at their most vulnerable. Others, based in international money centres, withdrew or reduced trade lines. Local banks, including central banks assuming their developmental role, stepped smartly into the breach.