Cheap external finance enabled the peripheral countries to swell their net external debt (Chart 3).11 Major financiers to the peripheral countries were largely concentrated in the core countries (with current account surpluses) and France.
It is my sincere hope that as we leave here today, we will endeavour to bring this dialogue back to our respective organisations, and home countries, and further build on the foundation that has already been laid. It is evidently clear that we need to have strong AML/CFT frameworks in our countries and the region.