Eli Remolona, the governor of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, issued a cautionary message during an International Monetary Fund (IMF) panel regarding the current economic outlook for Asia. Remolona emphasized that regional economies must actively guard against a recurrence of the 1997 Asian financial crisis, which devastated several national economies.

Remolona pointed to the period leading up to 1997 as a primary case study for modern policymakers. During that era, many Asian nations experienced massive surges in capital inflows, a trend that was famously labeled the “East Asian miracle” by the World Bank at the time. Remolona suggested that this period of rapid, unchecked growth masked underlying vulnerabilities that eventually led to a regional market collapse. By invoking the memory of 1997, the governor is advocating for stronger regulatory oversight and a more cautious approach to managing foreign investment to ensure long-term stability in the region.