What date is associated with the 1998 Russian financial crisis default?

August 17, 1998, is associated with Russia’s default and devaluation during the 1998 Russian financial crisis.

On that date, the Russian government and central bank announced a restructuring of ruble-denominated domestic debt, a temporary moratorium on some foreign debt payments, and a widening of the ruble’s trading band. The measures effectively amounted to a sovereign default and a sharp currency devaluation.

Russia had been weakened by low oil prices, declining tax revenues, large fiscal deficits, and the aftereffects of the Asian financial crisis. The government had relied heavily on short-term debt, leaving it vulnerable when investors became unwilling to keep refinancing those obligations.

The crisis hurt Russian banks, businesses, and households and contributed to worldwide financial stress. The failure of the U.S. hedge fund Long-Term Capital Management soon afterward became a related concern, but it was not the same as Russia’s sovereign default.