There has been a lot in the news recently about the possibility of a US default – what does this mean? A default is a term used for when a country refuses to pay its debt. Generally this is because they can no longer afford to, however there could be other reasons, e.g. a change of government brings in a socialist regime whose policy was to default. A default may not be of the entire debt, debtors may be required to take a ‘haircut’ – which is considered a default – meaning they wont be paid back the entire amount they are owed. [...]