Worse, there is the lurking danger of the downside effects of ill-timed and uncoordinated withdrawal of the massive monetary and fiscal accommodation that prevented the global economy from being sucked into what might have become the mother of all depressions. Closer to home, the year gone by was indeed challenging not just for the banking sector but for the economy as a whole.
For our small open economy, surfing against the unruly and unpredictable waves of the global financial crisis, without losing our balance and being swallowed up, remained our topmost priority. As if battling against these unprecedented economic challenges was not enough, we ran into considerable internal turbulence which the institution did not deserve and could well have done without.