25 Pesos – Argentina

Argentina entered 2010 with a sense of cautious optimism following the global financial crisis, but underlying currency pressures persisted. The official exchange rate was tightly managed by the Central Bank, which maintained a policy of a "dirty float" to keep the peso relatively stable, trading around 3.8 to 4 pesos per US dollar for much of the year. However, this stability was artificial and maintained through heavy intervention, depleting foreign reserves. A growing gap emerged with the informal "blue dollar" market, where pesos traded at a significant discount, reflecting widespread public distrust in the official rate and the government's economic policies, particularly concerning high inflation which official statistics were widely seen as underreporting.

The currency situation was fundamentally shaped by the economic model of President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner's administration, which prioritized domestic growth and social spending over fiscal and monetary orthodoxy. To finance this and control the exchange rate, the government imposed strict capital controls and limited access to official dollars for both businesses and individuals. These cepos cambiarios (exchange restrictions) created a complex web of parallel markets—including the "blue," "tourist," and "financial" dollars—distorting the economy. Exporters were disadvantaged by an overvalued official peso, while a booming demand for dollars as a safe-haven asset fueled the black market.

By the end of 2010, the contradictions of the system were becoming more pronounced. Despite strong GDP growth driven by high global commodity prices for Argentina's soy and grain exports, inflation was eroding purchasing power and fueling capital flight. The Central Bank's reserves, though bolstered by a controversial debt restructuring deal earlier in the year, remained under constant pressure to defend the peso. Thus, while a full-blown crisis was temporarily averted, the currency controls and multi-exchange rate regime established in 2010 laid an unstable foundation, setting the stage for more severe economic turmoil and a sharp devaluation in the years to follow.