Moldova is said to be evading the global economic crisis. There are no miraculous strategies or ingenious troubleshooting tricks involved, just good old-fashioned attitude of preventing the fall which is no less ingenious.

In Moldova, people keep their money in the drawer and spend only what they have. They pay in cash. They trust cash savings. “We never think of going to the bank for a loan or using a credit card,” one Moldovan says, “We operate on a cash-only system here.”

The policy of cash-only is a personal principle of the Moldovan. It is also ingrained in their tradition. Debt is largely taboo. Scarcity of resources over the years has taught Moldovans the ‘old-fashioned ideas of solvency and personal pride, and a pragmatic way of dealing with money.’ ‘In fact, the country hardly has a banking or financial sector at all.’

The result? While most of the world is addled with financial worries, Moldovans can sleep well at night. They engage in speculation, too, mostly ‘buying dollars and euros as hedges against the anemic local tender, the Moldovan leu.’ Currency exchange booths dot the city center.

A respected British financial journal, The Banker, gave Moldova a ranking of 5th among 184 countries ‘for economic stability in recession times,’ beating the US, UK, and other developed economies. The organization used the same 25 indicators of the 2009 World Financial Health Index.

Moldova has its own political turmoil and separatist conflict. It completely relies on Russia for its energy, and imports its agricultural needs. The country also happens to be Europe’s poorest country.

Via The Atlantic