Balance-of-Payments Crisis

Balance-of-Payments Crisis

A situation in which a sovereign entity has developed an unsustainable balance of payments deficit. That is, a balance of payments crisis occurs when so much money is flowing outside a country that it has difficulty borrowing to make up the difference. A balance of payments crisis becomes acute in circumstances like an exceptionally large budget deficit that lasts for an extended period of time or a default on interest payments on publicly-held debt. See also: 1998 Russian Financial Crisis.