This was precisely what the British empire-builders had wanted to prevent. When, during the 1997-98 Asian financial crisis, global investment professionals turned their attention from Thailand and Korea to Hong Kong, they quickly spotted structural weaknesses in the way the currency was managed.
英帝国的创立者正要试图避免此类问题。1997－98年亚洲金融危机期间，当全球职业投资人把目光从泰国和韩国转到香港的时候，迅速就找到了货币管理方式的结构性缺陷。本地专家此前就曾向任志刚发出过警告，但他对他们的说法不屑一顾，以致于与他一道出席会议的一位经济学家把他的态度形容为“屈尊俯就而且充满蔑视”。此外，当专家们意识到任、和他没有实权的名义老板曾荫权根本不懂经济推理时，他们在震惊之余转身走开了。