European debt crisis
The crisis of confidence in the government debt of several euro-area countries that unfolded after 2009.
How to read the number
The union's design left member states with a shared central bank and no printing press of their own: borrowing effectively in a foreign currency, a state cannot inflate its debt away and can become insolvent.
When the metric lies
Banks held their own government's bonds at a zero risk weight in the rules — an asset risk-free by regulation turned out to be the source of the crisis.
Also known as: eurozone debt crisis