The Liquidity of the Financial System and the Sovereign Debt Crisis in Europe – Is There a Solution?

The financial crisis of 2007-2008 has brought to light the liquidity problem of the financial system. Trying to solve this challenge, the members of the European Monetary Union were confronted with the sovereign debt crisis, which exacerbated the gravity of the initial situation. This paper analyses the causes and effects of the sovereign debt crisis as well as the measures taken by the European Central Bank to minimize the negative effects. The analysis is used in order to identify possible solutions for this critical situation. The findings reveal the fact that there is no panacea solution, that situations differ from country to country and that there is no measure only with positive effects. The broader question is which steps have to be taken in order to avoid a worse situation in the long run