Buenos Aires (AFP)
Her salary in Argentine pesos barely touched, Eugenia changes it into dollars and hides it somewhere in her house. Like many Argentines, scalded by repeated economic crises, she is less afraid of being robbed than of depositing her money in the bank.
"I do not trust the peso, it does not date today, it has always been," said the 43-year-old lawyer who does not want to give her name, like all Argentines interviewed by the AFP on this.
Struck by decades of cycles of inflation, recession and devaluation, many Argentines prefer to save in dollars and hide their savings "under the mattress", to use the popular expression.
Eugenia puts her savings away in her bathroom. "I prefer a thief to take it from me, rather than being at the bank," she said. This lack of confidence in banking establishments is not new.
"Historically, those who tried to save in pesos, it did not succeed, unlike those who saved in dollars. This is the consequence of a bankrupt financial system," summarizes Matias Rajnerman, economist at the cabinet Ecolatina.
Sofia, a 52-year-old interior designer, withdrew her savings in dollars from the bank in mid-2019. She feared a worsening of the economic crisis at the announced return of the Peronist left in power after the elections. end of October.
"What else can I do?" She asked, recalling that in 2019 alone the local currency lost 40% of its value.
Shortly after taking office, Alberto Fernandez, the new center-left Peronist president adopted a package of emergency measures to cope with inflation (more than 53% in 2019), increasing poverty and the explosion of public debt (91% of GDP at the end of 2019).
He also introduced a 30% tax on purchases of foreign currency, to increase the country's international reserves, and maintained exchange controls, with withdrawals limited to $ 200 per month per person, introduced by his predecessor. center-right, Mauricio Macri (2015-2019).
- Safes -
In fact, the rate of the peso against the dollar has remained stable: at the official rate, a dollar is exchanged for 63 pesos, even if it reaches 83 pesos on the parallel market. And the government wants to favor those who bring their savings back to the country.
But analysts say it remains difficult for Argentines to bet on the peso. "In this country, there is a history of systematic violation of the legal security of the saver. Private savings ends up being recovered by the government or exchanged for bonds", underlines Matias Rajnerman.
"It happened several times, especially in 2001", when the country experienced a historic default, he said.
2001 still haunts the Argentines: that year, in an attempt to cope with the crisis, ex-president Fernando de la Rua had implemented a measure, popularly called the "corralito" (playpen), to prevent liquidity from leaking from local banks.
The measure limited to 250 pesos, equivalent at the time to 250 dollars, the maximum amount that can be withdrawn from a bank per week, and prohibited any sending of funds abroad.
In the aftermath, the forced conversion of dollar accounts into devalued pesos made Argentines lose a large part of their savings. Many have since placed their dollars outside the country. According to the Central Bank, Argentines have more than $ 3 million in savings abroad, particularly in the United States, Switzerland and Uruguay.
Economists warn against this tap of dollars that is causing a vicious circle. "This reduces the financial system (...) it becomes difficult to reverse the trend," says Matias Rajnerman.
The economic deterioration has increased the demand for safes in Argentine banks. So much so that some had to organize waiting lists. Fabiana, a 56-year-old doctor, wanted to save $ 40,000 in savings, but has not yet been able to do so. "Lots of people are ahead of me," she says.
© 2020 AFP