"This still meant that they were basically swapping hyperinflation for racking up a huge external debt instead" This is extremely misleading. There is absolut

"This still meant that they were basically swapping hyperinflation for racking up a huge external debt instead" This is extremely misleading. There is absolutely no need for a country to be borrowing at such large rages. Your statement seems to imply that countries should get money for free from outside entities. Yes - if your finances are a mess - you're going to have crazy books - hyperinflation or massive debt - pick your poison. The 'fix' is not to change the numbers around, it's to solve the underlying fiscal and investment problems.