Part 5/10:
Yet these advancements were built on shaky foundations. The neoliberal restructuring of the international financial system through the deregulation of financial institutions had relaxed the rules around lending. As the financial industry exploded in size, loans became easy to come by, with investors drawn to the attractive growth prospects of Asian markets. This environment sowed the seeds for instability, creating a precarious cycle of short-term profit motives devoid of consideration for the underlying economic realities.