Which 1997 crisis caused Indonesia, South Korea, and Thailand to seek emergency financial help?

The 1997 crisis that pushed Indonesia, South Korea, and Thailand to seek emergency financial help was the Asian financial crisis.

The crisis began in Thailand after pressure on the baht forced the country to abandon its exchange-rate peg on July 2, 1997. Investors then reassessed other Asian economies, especially those with large foreign-currency debts, weak financial institutions, and fixed or managed exchange rates. Capital fled, currencies fell, and stock markets crashed across the region.

Thailand, Indonesia, and South Korea received major International Monetary Fund-supported programs, although the assistance also involved other international institutions and governments. The programs required economic reforms and financial restructuring, making the crisis politically and socially disruptive as well as financial.

The crisis later spread beyond East Asia, affecting markets in Russia and elsewhere. It is often confused with the 1998 Russian financial crisis, which was a later and related shock. The Asian crisis was not simply a stock-market event: currency devaluations, corporate debt, banking weakness, and sudden reversals of foreign capital all reinforced one another.