Greek withdrawal from the eurozone bank, the Bank of Greece) warned that "[a]n exit from the euro would lead to a significant decline in the living standards of Greek citizens." According to the announcement, per capita income would fall by 55%, the new national currency would depreciate by 65% vis-à-vis the euro, and the recession would deepen to 22%. Furthermore, unemployment would rise from its current 22% to 34% of the work force, and inflation, which was then at 2%, would soar to 30%. According to the Greek think-tank Foundation for Economic and Industrial Research (IOBE), a new drachma would lose half or more of
Euro the highest weighting. With the exception of Bosnia, Bulgaria, Macedonia (which had pegged their currencies against the Deutsche Mark) and Cape Verde (formerly pegged to the Portuguese escudo), all of these non-EU countries had a currency peg to the French Franc before pegging their currencies to the euro. Pegging a country's currency to a major currency is regarded as a safety measure, especially for currencies of areas with weak economies, as the euro is seen as a stable currency, prevents runaway inflation and encourages foreign investment due to its stability. Within the EU several currencies are pegged to the euro,