Economic and financial crises and disasters Books

Book SynopsisIn far too many cases, recommendations of forensic reports on previous pandemics were ignored. Substantial weaknesses in the preparation by public health authorities and governments increased the health and economic costs of the COVID-19 pandemic relative to what they would have been if pre-existing recommendations had been followed and a wider set of plans had been put into place. We discuss parallels between the lack of preparation of financial system regulators prior to the global financial crisis and the lack of preparation by public health authorities and governments prior to COVID-19. These parallels relate to: required stocks (of capital or equipment), data collection and sharing, lending facilities, stress testing and war games, early warning indicators and systems, contagion from abroad, operational risks, a system-wide approach (including effects on the real economy), models incorporating the heterogeneity of individuals, and effects on less-regulated parts of the system. The recent COVID-19 crisis has demonstrated that, apart from the direct economic consequences from illness and death from the virus, the main costs have been due to the varying degrees of preventative measures taken by the public, firms, and governments that directly impacted health, as well as social, economic, and financial activity. We make recommendations for carrying out post mortems on the COVID-19 experience, planning for future pandemics, and establishing transparent and accountable governance systems. We then propose the use of regular, combined health, economic, and financial stress tests and exercises/war games in preparing for future pandemics and other major environmental shocks.

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Book SynopsisThe book explores the effect of modern technological shifts on human society, showing that technologies are undergoing accelerating qualitative changes that open up new opportunities for personal development and satisfaction of wants and, simultaneously, engender risks associated with growing opportunities of human interference with nature and technogenic stress on the environment. Based on the study of cutting-edge technologies and resulting socioeconomic shifts, Bodrunov’s analysis outlines the shape of the civilizational crisis we face. It can only be overcome by founding a new industrial society of the second generation (if we consider the new industrial state described by J. K. Galbraith as the first generation) reliant on knowledge intensive material production and the gradual removal of humans from immediate material production.Trade Review“Sergey Bodrunov’s lively book addresses one of the most controversial consequences of liberal globalization—the deindustrialisation of the advanced capitalist states. Following the line of thinking of writers such as Clark Kerr and J.K. Galbraith, Bodrunov insists on the revival of industrialization and in doing so he makes advances on earlier theorizing. He insists that the development of civilization calls for a higher level of material production predicated on human knowledge and he anticipates much of current theorizing about the effects of artificial intelligence. In a provocative discussion, predicated on the experience of post-socialist Russia, he calls for positive economic policies to enhance the capabilities of modern economies to advance to higher levels of industrial development. The book will appeal to readers seeking solutions to modern economic problems through state coordination.”— David Lane, Emeritus Professor of Sociology, University of Cambridge, UK“As Marx, Veblen and John Kenneth Galbraith understood, human society co-evolves with its material and technological conditions, which fact has grave implications for those seduced by financialization or the post-industrial mirage. In The Coming New Industrial State: Reloaded, Sergey Bodrunov gives a fair—and sometimes harsh—portrait of modern Russia's fall into dependence on outside technologies, machines, and components. He advocates a path forward for Russia at the technical frontiers, with a mixed economy rooted in ‘an authentic culture’ without which, he writes, ‘there can be no effective industrial development.’ The war and sanctions may now catapult this analysis to the forefront.”— James K. Galbraith, The University of Texas at Austin, Member, Free Economic Society and Foreign Member, Russian Academy of Sciences“Sergey Bodrunov’s work is a major contribution to human knowledge, rooted both in his practical experience in Russian industry and government, and in revival of interest in the most profound issues in the philosophy of thought. It deserves the attention of everyone with an interest in innovation. But beyond that, anyone concerned with the rising challenge of new technologies should read it. At the center of The Coming New Industrial State lies the following proposition: until now, technology has driven society. The ‘information economy’ calls for a different relationship; it is society that must drive technology. Innovation, therefore, henceforth constitutes social innovation; a different way of organizing society. Bodronov not only poses the question, but provides much-needed answers.”— Alan Freeman, Geopolitical Economy Research Group, University of ManitobaTable of ContentsIntroductionPart One: Material Production and Industry: Technology, Labor, and ProductChapter 1: Production and Its Product: The Industrial Mode of ProductionChapter 2: The Service Industry, Material Production, and Their Correlation in the Modern EconomyPart Two: The Russian Economic System and (De)industrializationChapter 3: Industrialization of the Economy as a Factor of Social Development; The Phenomenon of Modern DeindustrializationChapter 4: Industrial Development in Russia: Lessons from the PastChapter 5: The Deindustrialization of Russia and the Challenges of ReindustrializationChapter 6: Techno-Economic Paradigms and the Renewal of the Russian Economy: The Political-Economic AspectChapter 7: The Russian Economic System: The Future of High-Tech Industrial ProductionPart Three: The New Industrial State v.2Chapter 8: The New Industrial State of the Twentieth CenturyChapter 9: The New Industrial State v.2: The Parameters of its GenesisPart Four: Reindustrialization, Import Substitution, and Active Industrial PolicyChapter 10: Technological Leadership and National SecurityChapter 11: Innovative Economic Development: Into NIS.2Chapter 12: Industrial Policy as a Tool of Reindustrialization and Import SubstitutionChapter 13: Imperatives, Opportunities, and Challenges of ReindustrializationChapter 14: The Revival of Production, Science, and Education: The Primary Priority of Modern Industrial PolicyChapter 15: NIS.2 as a Social SystemConclusion

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Book SynopsisIn the Eighth Edition of this classic text on the financial history of bubbles and crashes, Robert McCauley joins with Robert Aliber in building on Charles Kindleberger's renowned work. McCauley draws on his central banking experience to introduce new chapters on cryptocurrency and the United States as the 21st Century global lender of last resort. He also updates the book's coverage of the recent property bubble in China, as well as providing new perspectives on the US housing bubble of 2003-2006, and the Japanese bubble of the late 1980s. And he gives new attention to the social psychology that leads people to take the risk of investing in Ponzi schemes and asset price bubbles. For the first time in this revised and updated edition, figures highlight key points to ensure that today’s generation of finance and economic researchers, students, practitioners and policy-makers—as well as investors looking to avoid crashes—have access to this panoramic history of financial crisis.Table of Contents1: Financial Crises: a Hardy Perennial.- 2: The Anatomy of a Typical Crisis.-3: Speculative Manias.- 4: Fueling the Flames: the Expansion of Credit.- 5: The Critical Stage – When the Bubble Is About To Pop.- 6: Bernie Madoff: Frauds, Swindles, and the Credit Cycle.- 7: Domestic Contagion: Twin Peaks?.- 8: International Contagion 1618–1933.- 9: Bubble Contagion: Mexico City to Tokyo to Bangkok to New York, London, and Reykjavik.- 10: Policy Responses: Benign Neglect, Exhortation, and Bank Holidays.- 11: The Domestic Lender of Last Resort.- 12: The International Lender of Last Resort before 2000.-13: The 21st Century International Lender of Last Resort.- 14: Bitcoin: Worse than a Ponzi.- 15 The Lessons of History.

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Book SynopsisWritten for undergraduate and graduate students of finance, economics and business, the fourth edition of Financial Markets and Institutions provides a fresh analysis of the European financial system. Combining theory, data and policy, this successful textbook examines and explains financial markets, financial infrastructures, financial institutions, and the challenges of financial supervision and competition policy. The fourth edition features not only greater discussion of the financial and euro crises and post-crisis reforms, but also new market developments like FinTech, blockchain, cryptocurrencies and shadow banking. On the policy side, new material covers unconventional monetary policies, the Banking Union, the Capital Markets Union, Brexit, the Basel III capital adequacy framework for banking supervision and macroprudential policies. The new edition also features wider international coverage, with greater emphasis on comparisons with countries outside the European Union, including the United States, China and Japan.Table of ContentsPart I. Setting the Stage: 1. Functions of the financial system; 2. Financial crises; 3. European financial integration: origins and history; 4. Monetary policy of the European Central Bank; Part II. Financial Markets: 5. European financial markets; 6. The economics of financial integration; 7. Financial infrastructures; 8. Financial innovation; Part III. Financial Institutions: 9. The role of institutional investors; 10. European banks; 11. European insurers and financial conglomerates; Part IV. Policies for the Financial Sector: 12. Financial regulation and supervision; 13. Financial stability; 14. European competition policy; Index.

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Book SynopsisHow top traders made huge profits during the most momentous market events of the past century Financial and commodity markets are characterized by periodic crashes and upside explosions. In retrospect, the reasons behind these abrupt movements often seem very clear, but generally few people understand what''s happening at the time. Top traders and investors like George Soros or Jesse Livermore have stood apart from the crowd and capitalized on their unique insights to capture huge profits. Engaging and informative, The Greatest Trades of All Time chronicles how a select few traders anticipated market eruptions?from the 1929 stock market crash to the 2008 subprime mortgage meltdown?and positioned themselves to excel while a majority of others failed. Along the way, author Vincent Veneziani describes the economic and financial forces that led to each market cataclysm and how theseindividuals perceived what was happening beforehand and why they decided to place big bets, Table of ContentsAcknowledgments xiii About the Author xv Introduction xvii Chapter 1 J. Kyle Bass: Timing is Everything 1 The Back Story 1 A Few Definitions 2 Bass Asks Why 4 Learning from the Past 6 Shorting Subprime Loans 7 The Best Position 8 The Effects of Abuse 11 Who Was Watching? 13 Re-creating Bass’s Trading Strategies 17 Bass’s Top Traits 17 Chapter 2 James Chanos: The Real King of Enron 21 Enter Enron 21 Really Looking at Enron 23 The Best Position 26 Recreating Chanos’s Trading Strategies 28 A More Recent Example 28 Chanos’s Top Traits 30 Chapter 3 Paul Tudor Jones II: Legendary Global Macro Trader 31 Following a Genius 31 The Path of Greatness 32 Starting Out 33 Knowing All the Markets 35 Global Macro Trading 36 Elliot Wave Theory 38 More Keys to Jones’s Success 40 Success beyond Trading 43 Recreating Jones’s Trading Strategies 43 Jones’s Top Traits 44 Chapter 4 John Templeton: Legendary Mutual Fund Manager 47 What Made Templeton Famous 47 Templeton’s Life before Investing 49 Educational Aspirations 50 The Married Life 52 Templeton’s Big Move 53 Back to New York 54 Looking to the Future, and the Templeton Growth Fund 55 Templeton’s Second Marriage and Fund 56 The Bahamas 57 Recreating Templeton’s Trading Strategies 58 Templeton’s Top Traits 59 Chapter 5 Jesse Livermore: Legendary Speculator 61 Livermore’s History 61 At Home in New York 63 Fame and Fortune 63 The Panic of 1907 64 The Crash of 1929 65 Livermore’s Tragic End 66 An Example of Livermore’s Influence Today 68 Recreating Livermore’s Trading Strategies 69 Livermore’s Top Traits 69 Chapter 6 John Paulson: The Greatest Trade of All Time 73 Paulson’s Early Career 73 Paulson & Co. 74 The Greatest Trade 74 Recreating Paulson’s Trading Strategies 79 Paulson’s Top Traits 81 Chapter 7 George Soros: From Humble Beginnings to World Trader 83 Soros’s Famous Trades 84 The Hardships of a Trading Genius 87 Going to School in London 88 Work in New York 90 Joining the Big Leagues 91 Finding Himself 93 Crashing from Success 95 A New Protégé 97 Onto the World Stage 98 The Backlash 100 A Conflicted Mind 101 A New Era 101 Recreating Soros’s Trading Strategies 102 Soros’s Top Traits 103 Chapter 8 David Einhorn: A Company’s Worst Nightmare 105 Allied is Not an Ally 105 Lucky Lehman 108 The Great Beyond 110 Recreating Einhorn’s Trading Strategies 111 Einhorn’s Top Traits 112 Chapter 9 Martin Schwartz: From Amateur to Superstar 115 Start Small, Go Big 115 Trading Like a Rock Star 117 Winding Down 118 Recreating Schwartz’s Trading Strategies 120 Schwartz’s Top Traits 121 Chapter 10 John Arnold: Master of Energy 123 Success at Enron 123 Centaurus Energy 124 The Explosion 126 Recreating Arnold’s Trading Strategies 127 Crude Oil 127 Natural Gas 128 Arnold’s Top Traits 130 Chapter 11 More Great Trades: Phillip Falcone, David Tepper, Andrew Hall, Greg Lippmann 131 Phillip Falcone 131 Recreating Falcone’s Trading Strategies 134 David Tepper 135 Recreating Tepper’s Trading Strategies 136 Andrew Hall 138 Recreating Hall’s Trading Strategies 139 Greg Lippmann 141 Recreating Lippmann’s Trading Strategies 143 In Summary 144 Notes 147 Glossary 149 References 151 Helpful Web Sites 157 Index 161

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Book SynopsisFew countries experienced the period of turbulence surrounding the global financial crisis as intensely as Greece. The country topped the global news agenda as images of mass protests in Athens jostled for space with reports of torturous negotiations between political leaders struggling to agree support packages. Dramatic headlines proclaimed not only Greek bankruptcy and a possible exit from the euro, but the collapse of the single currency itself. This book offers a comprehensive and authoritative account of the lengthy crisis that beset Greece and the wider Eurozone. Written for the general reader, it explores the passage of events from different perspectives as it probes the story behind the headlines to reveal the full complexity of the crisis. Were its causes to be found in the prevailing international financial environment or in the economic and political system which evolved in Greece since the early 1970s? Did the choices made by both domestic and international actors such as the IMF and the EU exacerbate the crisis? Most importantly, what has been the impact of the crisis on the daily lives of the country’s inhabitants?Trade Review‘Thorough and readable, this blow-by-blow account of how Greece got itself into a seemingly interminable crisis of gigantic proportions, will appeal to readers wishing to move beyond the usual clichés. An essential reference.' -- Stathis Kaylvas, Arnold Wolfers Professor of Political Science, Yale University'This is an important book. Siani-Davies provides an insightful account of the toxic interaction between the Greece and its creditors over the past decade. Few foreign observers can produce such a perceptive analysis of the domestic complexities that conditioned Greece’s journey through the desert of austerity.' -- Dimitris Papadimitriou, Professor of Politics, University of Manchester'This book is certainly the most penetrating effort in English to describe the way Greece reached an economic and political dead-end. Taking an interdisciplinary approach, the book helps us to understand the role played by Greeks, Europeans, Americans and the IMF in forming an extremely complicated and confusing situation, which for the author has its origins in an incomplete process of modernisation.' -- Kostas Kostis, Professor of Economics, University of Athens, and author of 'History’s Spoiled Children: The Formation of the Modern Greek State'

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Book SynopsisSet against the backdrop of the Great Depression, the story of a Texas man who, in 1931, set out to walk backwards around the world.

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Book SynopsisThe untold story of how FDR did the unthinkable to save the American economy.Trade Review"Brilliantly told."—Steve Hanke, Forbes“A superb history.”—David Frum“The story is fascinating and the lessons eternal.”—Martin Wolf, Financial Times“American Default is the history of that mighty legal, moral, political and monetary controversy, the effects of which are with us still.”—James Grant, Wall Street Journal“A magnificent piece of scholarship . . . [that] illustrates the benefits of historical distance in evaluating major events.”—Kenneth Rogoff, Project Syndicate“Admirably accessible and illuminating.”—Benn Steil, Financial World

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Book SynopsisThe new, fully-updated edition of the respected guide to understanding financial extremes, evaluating investment opportunities, and identifying future bubbles Now in its second edition, Boombustology is an authoritative, up-to-date guide on the history of booms, busts, and financial cycles. Engaging and accessible, this popular book helps investors, policymakers, and analysts navigate the radical uncertainty that plagues today's uncertain investing and economic environment. Author Vikram Mansharamani, an experienced global equity investor and prominent Harvard University lecturer, presents his multi-disciplinary framework for identifying financial bubbles before they burst. Moving beyond the typical view of booms and busts as primarily economic occurrences, this innovative book offers a multidisciplinary approach that utilizes microeconomic, macroeconomic, psychological, political, and biological lenses to spot unsustainable dynamics. It gives the reader insights into the dynamics thaTable of ContentsForeword Foreword to the First Edition Preface Is There a Bubble in Boom–Bust Books? Acknowledgments Introduction The Study of Financial Extremes: One-Armed Analysts, Secrets, and Mysteries Part I Five Lenses Chapter 1 Microeconomic Perspectives: To Equilibrium or Not? Chapter 2 Macroeconomic Perspectives: The Impact of Debt, Deflation, and Mispriced Money on Asset Markets Chapter 3 The Psychology Lens: Homo Economicus Meets Homo Sapiens Chapter 4 Political Foundations: Evaluating Property Rights, Price Mechanisms, and Political Distortions Chapter 5 Biological Frameworks: Epidemiology and Emergence Part II Historical Case Studies Chapter 6 Tulipomania: A Bubble in Seventeenth-Century Holland Chapter 7 The Great Depression: From Roaring Twenties to Yawning Thirties Chapter 8 The Japanese Boom and Bust: A Credit-Fueled Bubble Economy Chapter 9 The Asian Financial Crisis: The Mirage of a Miracle Chapter 10 The U.S. Housing Boom and Bust: The Homeowner’s Society Creates the People’s Panic Chapter 11 China’s Credit-Fueled Investment Boom Part III Looking Ahead Chapter 12 Spotting Bubbles Before They Burst: A Method for Identifying Unsustainable Booms Chapter 13 Boombustology in Action: Is India Next? Conclusion Hedgehogs, Foxes, and the Dangers of Making Predictions Addendum A Passive Investing Bubble? About the Author Index

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Book SynopsisThe fourth title of Process's Self-Reliance series, this is a practical, empowering guide that addresses the questions and anxieties of these turbulent economic times.

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Book SynopsisWhen the first rumblings of the coming financial crisis were heard in August 2007, three men who were never elected to public office suddenly became the most powerful men in the world. They were the leaders of the world''s three most important central banks: Ben Bernanke of the U.S. Federal Reserve, Mervyn King of the Bank of England, and Jean-Claude Trichet of the European Central Bank. Over the next five years, they and their fellow central bankers deployed trillions of dollars, pounds and euros to try and contain the waves of panic that threatened to bring down the global financial system.Neil Irwin''s The Alchemists is both a gripping account of the most intense exercise in economic crisis management we''ve ever seen, and an insightful examination of the role and power of the central bank. It begins in Stockholm, Sweden, in the seventeenth century, where central banking had its rocky birth, and then progresses through a brisk but dazzling tutorial on how the central bankTrade ReviewBrilliantly reported and riveting, Neil Irwin's The Alchemists is a must-read for anyone who wants to understand the global reach of the financial crisis through which we are still living. The international perspective brings a fascinating and wholly new dimension to the story, one that has until now not been adequately told. -- Liaquat Ahamed, author of 'Lords of Finance'Brings events to life without losing sight of the bigger issues * Money Week *[Mr. Irwin] has provided an accessible, engrossing account of the tribulations that Mr. Bernanke, with Mervyn A. King of the Bank of England and Jean-Claude Trichet of the European Central Bank, endured in pulling the world financial system back from collapse... Mr. Irwin seems to have talked with everyone, read the right scholarly papers and interviewed important dissenters in the Fed, the European Central Bank, the Bank of England and the Bundesbank... He has a nice touch for translating central banking's mysteries, opaque and forbidding, into understandable English. He is astute in describing the internal and external politics of institutions traditionally expected to remain above politics of the usual sort. * New York Times *A detailed and fast-moving account of these perilous years. This is the crisis as told through emails, phone calls, meetings and one very fateful walk along the beach in Deauville, France. * The Wall Street Journal *

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Book SynopsisThis book explores the nature of money and banking throughout their history, and applies this to the study of financial crises. The first part of the book covers the evolution of monetary arrangements, money creation and the business of banking since their earliest manifestations to the present day, showing how changes in the business of banking led to a transformation in the money we use. The second part of the book applies the understanding acquired during the first part to the study of financial crises, showing that money is taken out of circulation when bank loans are paid back. This key insight is at the core of the mechanism that explains financial crises, since an economy that sees its money supply diminish is also an economy that cannot generate enough demand for its own goods and services. Financial crises result when bank lending slows down or comes to a halt – while outstanding bank loans are still due for repayment. The mechanism is discussed in detail, and the crucial role of banks highlighted. Adequate policy measures to prevent crises, or to mitigate their effects, are then put forward in light of this mechanism. The book will be of interest to researchers and students of economic and financial history, as well as those working in finance, banking and economics more widely. Table of ContentsIntroduction.- 1 What is money?.- A History of Money and Banking.- 2 Money from the very beginning.- 3 Banks enter the scene.- 4 The dawn of modern banking.- 5 The creation of a paper currency.- 6 Modern banking comes of age.- 7 The role of banks in a modern economy.- II An Analysis of Financial Crises.- 8 The role of money and the logic of recessions.- 9 Describing financial crises.- 10 The mechanics of financial crises - part one.- 11 The mechanics of financial crises - part two.- 12 Fighting off financial crises.- 13 Preventing financial crises.- Further Reading.- References.

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Book SynopsisThis book is an authoritative account of the economic and political roots of the 2008 financial crisis. It examines why it was triggered in the United States, why it morphed into the great recession, and why the contagion spread with such ferocity around the globe. It also examines how and why economies - including the Eurozone, Russia, China, India, East Asia, and the Middle East - have been impacted and explores their response to the unprecedented challenges of the crisis and the effectiveness of their policy measures. Global Financial Contagion specifically looks at how the Obama Administration''s policy missteps have contributed to America''s huge debt and slow recovery, why the Eurozone''s response to its existential crisis has become a never-ending saga, and why the G20''s efforts to create a new international financial architecture may fall short. This book will long be regarded as the standard account of the crisis and its aftermath.Table of ContentsIntroduction; 1. The United States: why the trigger?; 2. The Bush and Obama Administrations' response; 3. From the American to the European crisis; 4. The Eurozone's sovereign debt crisis; 5. Russia: not an exceptional country; 6. China: from crisis management to rebalancing; 7. Japan, South Korea, and India: impact and recovery; 8. The Middle East amid the global financial crisis; 9. The great recession and the world's poorest; 10. G20 world: economic governance for the post-crisis world.

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Book SynopsisWhy does America have a love affair with homeownership? For many, buying a home is no longer in their best interest and may harm their children''s educational opportunities. This book argues that US leaders need to re-evaluate housing policies and develop new ones that ensure that all Americans have access to affordable housing, whether rented or owned. After describing common myths, the book shows why the circumstances now faced by America''s financial underclass make it impossible for them to benefit from homeownership because they cannot afford to buy homes. It then exposes the risks of ''home buying while brown or black,'' discussing US policies that made it easier for whites to buy homes, but harder and more costly for blacks and Latinos to do so. The book argues that remaining racial discrimination and certain demographic features continue to make it harder for blacks and Latinos to receive homeownership''s promised benefits.Trade Review'The myth that everyone should be a homeowner is just that - a myth, argues Professor Mechele Dickerson in this penetrating book, and a dangerous one at that. She reveals how financial institutions and real estate professionals, backed by the US government, promoted increasingly risky credit in service to the homeownership myth - with particularly disastrous consequences for minority groups, the elderly, and low- and moderate-income neighborhoods. Professor Dickerson demonstrates that, contrary to their supposed goals, the numerous incentives for homeownership often distort financial planning and destabilize residential areas, and she argues that many of our fellow citizens would be better served by programs that invest in education and earning opportunities, so as to provide a firm platform for stable communities that include renters along with homeowners.' Carol M. Rose, University of Arizona College of Law, coauthor of Saving the Neighborhood: Racially Restrictive Covenants, Law, and Social Norms'A bold, clear-eyed, and refreshingly blunt appraisal of the problems with the homeownership proposition for struggling middle-class and poorer workers. Mechele Dickerson's book is a must-read for anyone in housing policy.' Patricia A. McCoy, Liberty Mutual Professor of Law, Boston College Law SchoolTable of Contents1. Chasing the American dream; 2. The happy homeownership narrative; 3. US support for homeowners; 4. The homeownership crisis; 5. Homeowner harm and the blame game; 6. Flawed premises; 7. The burden of home buying while black or Latino; 8. The benefits of home buying while black or Latino; 9. Homeownership: demographic disparities; 10. Outlook and prescription for the future.

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Book SynopsisThis innovative analysis investigates a complex issue of tremendous economic and political importance: what makes some countries vulnerable to banking crises, while others emerge unscathed? Banks on the Brink explains why some countries are more vulnerable to banking crises than others. Copelovitch and Singer highlight the effects of two variables in combination: foreign capital inflows and the relative prominence of securities markets in the domestic financial system. Foreign capital is the fuel for banks'' potentially dangerous behavior, and banks are more likely to take on excessive risks when operating in a financial system with large securities markets. The book analyzes over thirty years of data and provides historical case studies of two key countries, Canada and Germany, each of which explores how political decisions in the 19th and early-20th centuries continue to affect financial stability today. The analyses in this book have crucial policy implications, identifying potentiaTrade Review'This book is really interesting, and potentially very important for our understanding of crises and for public policy. Copelovitch and Singer advance a thesis that is quite different, and considerably more subtle, than the standard accounts of why legislators tolerate fragile financial systems. This survives its own tests. I hope others pick up the challenge.' Paul Tucker, Harvard University'The best scholarship in political economy combines macroeconomics with a deep sense of its social and historical embeddedness. Copelovitch and Singer's work is such a masterpiece … This book is not only a brilliant empirical investigation, but also a compelling history of the financial development of Canada and Germany. Anybody interested in financial market stability, from regulators to scholars and journalists, should read this work.' Mark Manger, University of Toronto'Copelovitch and Singer provide a compelling, comprehensive, and well-written analysis of why some countries are prone to banking crises while others are not. By demonstrating how the institutional context and the availability of international capital jointly shape banks' propensity to engage in risky behavior, this impressive book makes an important and timely contribution to our understanding of how globalization affects the stability of the world economy.' Stefanie Walter, Universität Zürich'Modern economic history is littered with banking crises that devastate economies and polarize politics. In Banks on the Brink, Mark Copelovitch and David Singer analyze the sources of these crises. They argue that domestic financial-market conditions, especially the role of securities markets, and international capital flows are responsible for banking crises. Their careful logic, statistical analyses, and detailed case studies make compelling reading for anyone interested in the economics and politics of finance.' Jeffry Frieden, Harvard University'Much recent work on banking crises focuses on emerging market economies in East Asia and Latin America. This timely book instead asks why there are banking crisis in developed economies and what policy-makers can do about them. As in the emerging market cases, the authors find that capital flows from abroad are an important potential trigger for banking crises. But what sets the developed world apart is the potential use of such capital and the structure of their financial systems, which are linked. As the case studies for Canada and Germany indicate, banks in countries with underdeveloped securities markets do not face pressure to channel this 'hot' capital to risky uses. In countries with developed security markets, however, risky behaviour is more likely, as are then banking crises. The policy implications follow convincingly from the analysis – address large current account deficits and increase capital requirements. Anyone interested in understanding crises and how to make them less frequent should read this book.' Mark Hallerberg, Hertie School of Governance'This book compares the two designs and focuses on financial market disintermediation and the importance of cross-border capital flows to explain the degree of financial instability in the two countries. Key lessons (and a few surprises) are drawn from the two cases for policy initiatives to contain damaging instability at tolerable costs to financial efficiency and innovation.' I. Walter, ChoiceTable of Contents1. The politics and economics of financial instability; 2. Banking crises, capital flows, and financial market structure; 3. Capital inflows, market structure, and banking crises: empirical evidence; 4. O Canada? Unraveling the mystery of Canadian bank stability; 5. Finanzplatz Deutschland: German bank stability and its decline; 6. Policy responses: what to do (and not to do) about financial instability.

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Book SynopsisFederal disaster programs kind of sit there and gather moss after all the expenses of running the government agencies responsible for rendering assistance to the disaster victims are spent on staff salaries, computers, travel and all the accompaniments of perceived power. Hopefully, there will be no disasters. Otherwise, let them be small disasters which might not interrupt lunch. In the case of Hurricane Katrina, the federal disaster programs were themselves disasters which were limp responses to the thousands of dead, hundreds of thousands homeless and entire sectors of America destroyed. This new book tries to examine the initial disaster programs, recovery disaster programs designed to cover-up for the initial flaws and the programs planned to prevent more disastrous disaster programs.

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Book SynopsisThis book examines the possibility of the federal government reaching its statutory debt limit and not raising it, with a particular focus on government operations. The nature of the federal government''s debt is explained, as are the processes associated with federal borrowing, and historical events that may influence prospective actions. This book also includes an analysis of what could happen if the federal government may no longer issue debt, has exhausted alternative sources of cash, and, therefore, depends on incoming receipts or other sources of funds to provide any cash needed to liquidate federal obligations.

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Book SynopsisEmerging relatively unscathed from the banking crisis of 2008, China has been viewed as a model of both rampant success and fiscal stability. But beneath the surface lies a network of fissures that look likely to erupt into the next big financial crash. A bloated real-estate sector, roller-coaster stock market, and rapidly growing shadow-banking sector have all coalesced to create a perfect storm: one that is in danger of taking the rest of the world’s economy with it. Walden Bello traces our recent history of financial crises – from the bursting of Japan’s ‘bubble economy’ in 1990 to Wall Street in 2008 – taking in their political and human ramifications such as rising inequality and environmental degradation. He not only predicts that China might be the site of the next crash, but that under neoliberalism this will simply keep happening. The only way that we can stop this cycle, Bello argues, is through a fundamental change in the ways that we organise: a shift to cooperative enterprise, respectful of the environment, and which fractures the twin legacies of imperialism and capitalism. Insightful, erudite and passionate, Paper Dragons is a must-read for anyone wishing to prevent the next financial meltdown.Trade ReviewThis welcome critique of global finance is admirably angry. * Guardian *Paper Dragons looks at the economic dangers building up in the Chinese economy and situates them in world economic developments since the Global Financial Crisis. * Green Left *Walden Bello suggests that, while the next devastating crisis with global ramifications can strike any one of capitalism’s many nodes, the immediate threat comes from Asian giant, China. The lesson? Reform of capitalism may be the immediate call, but in the final analysis we must transform how the system works and we live our lives. * C. P. Chandrasekhar, Professor of Economics, Jawaharlal Nehru University *Walden Bello argues that fragility remains within the system and points to China as the potential source of the world's next major economic crisis. He raises issues that citizens, policymakers, and financial players ignore at their peril. * Dean Baker, Co-founder and Senior Economist, Center for Economic Policy Research *Walden Bello shows how global capitalism remains structurally prone to financial crises. With clarity and conviction, Bello continues to explain reality lucidly and inspire progressive alternatives. * Jayati Ghosh, Professor of Economics Jawaharlal Nehru University *'Startling, revelatory, brilliant! An astonishing exposé of the frightening economic details of this moment. * Jerry Mander, author of The Capitalism Papers *'In 2008, a U.S. housing bubble careened out of control and plunged the world into a gruesome global financial crisis. Bello brilliantly lays out the case that – unless we put effective checks in place – the next financial crisis will likely erupt in China. * John Cavanagh, Director, Institute for Policy Studies *In this volume, Walden Bello demonstrates that East and Southeast Asia has been the location of multiple financial crises, despite enjoying an international reputation as a group of successful globalizers. * Manuel Montes, Senior Analyst, South Center, Geneva *Walden Bello, in this terrifying new book, explains that, if major changes are not taken, the same set of circumstances – unregulated shadow banking, runaway financial speculation and an overheated real estate bubble – are poised to take down China’s economy, and perhaps the world's with it. A very important book for this political moment. * Maude Barlow, author of Blue Future and chairperson of the Council of Canadians *A stark warning about the vulnerable state of global financial markets from one of our most acute and prescient thinkers. * Naomi Klein, author of This Changes Everything and The Shock Doctrine *'A tour de force of past and future financial crises by the globe's most astute progressive political economist. Bello puts forward a comprehensive agenda to prevent the next crisis. * Robin Broad, Guggenheim Fellow and Professor, American University *'Walden Bello brilliantly explains how our global financial system still operates as a giant casino — with China now one of the most reckless gamblers. Read this book to learn how we can tame the global financial casino — before China and other reckless gamblers cause the next crash. * Sarah Anderson, Global Economy Project Director *Walden Bello is one of the rare truly global thinkers. A must-read for those seeking prevent the next financial meltdown. * Superb.' *'Crisply and clearly written, Paper Dragons demonstrates that: "Yes, it can happen here, again and again." Politicians and lawmakers everywhere had better get a grip on finance, now. Or watch out, World! * Susan George, President of the Transnational Institute and author of How the Other Half Dies *Walden Bello is one of the foremost analysts of global economics and politics of our time. He shows that the global economy is a ticking time bomb. Erudite and eloquent, this book could not be timelier. This is a must read. * William I. Robinson, Professor of Sociology, University of California *'The question may not be if another crash will take place, but when and where will it start. Bello eschews pessimist fatalism, arguing for a broad programme of financial reforms integrated into a comprehensive programme of reforms of the real economy. Inspired and accessible … Wholeheartedly recommended! * Heikki Patomäki, Professor of World Politics, University of Helsinki, author of The Great Eurozone Crisis *Table of Contents1. Introduction: Will China be the Epicenter of the Next Financial Crisis? 2. Crisis in Wall Street and the Keynesian Response 3. Europe: Social Democracy’s Faustian Pact with Global Finance 4. Asia and Finance Capital: From the Japanese Bubble to China’s Financial Time Bomb 5. Reforming the Global Financial Architecture: Opportunities Lost, 2008-2018 6. How to Rebottle the Genie 7. Conclusion: Why Financial Reform is Not Enough

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Book Synopsis

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Book Synopsis

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Book Synopsis

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Book Synopsis

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Book SynopsisPeter Nichols has crafted a terrifyingly relevant historical narrative...A terrific read. -Nathaniel Philbrick, author of In The Heart of the Sea In 1871, America's last fleet of whaling ships was destroyed in an arctic ice storm. Miraculously, 1,218 men, women and children survived, but the disaster was catastrophic at home. Oil and Ice is the story of one fateful whaling season that illuminates the unprecedented rise and devastating fall of America's first oil economy, and the fate of today's petroleum industry.

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Book SynopsisThe 1997 Asian Crisis principally affected Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Korea, as well as other East Asian countries heavily dependent on intra-regional trade. Banks and other financial institutions quickly become insolvent, and heavily indebted industrial firms went bankrupt. Many of these firms were affiliated with the business groups of this region, yet most groups did not immediately collapse, indeed they proved remarkably robust, some surviving and even prospering.This book examines these East Asian business groups and their subsequent restructuring following the Asian Crisis. East Asian nations embarked on very different trajectories to this common external shock. The Asian Crisis affected the inter-relationships among the socio-cultural environment, the state, and the market of each country quite differently and had distinct effects on the operations of these countries'' business groups. This slow yet divergent pattern of development provides evidence against theories of rapid global convergence.Yet East Asian business groups face an uncertain future. Foreign investors'' influence has increased substantially since the crisis, as East Asian governments had to accommodate their demands to keep attracting foreign capital. Governments supervise banks more closely and have loosened restrictions on mergers and hostile takeovers, further strengthening the discipline of the market. Various entry barriers that had inhibited foreign multinationals from competing in national markets were lifted, exposing business groups to intensified foreign competition. Under these new conditions, business groups in East Asia should reconfigure their business structures and adjust their corporate governance systems to regain momentum for further growth. Business groups will continue to be important vehicles for the sustained future growth of this region, and this book presents a substantial amount of new data on this, which will be of interest to academics, researchers, and advanced students of East Asian business, and business practitioners working within the region.Table of Contents1. Introduction: Business Groups in East Asia ; PART I: JAPAN AND FORMER NICS (NEWLY INDUSTRIALIZED COUNTRIES) ; 2. Japanese Business Groups: Continuity in the Face of Change ; 3. Korean Business Groups: The Financial Crisis and the Restructuring of Chaebols ; 4. Taiwanese Business Groups: Steady Growth in Institutional Transition ; 5. Singaporean Business Groups: The Role of the State and Capital in Singapore Inc. ; PART II: EMERGING MARKET COUNTRIES ; 6. Malaysian Business groups: The State and Capital Development in the Post-Currency Crisis Period ; 7. Thai Business Groups: Crisis and Restructuring ; 8. Indonesian Business Groups: The Crisis in Progress ; PART III: NEW HORIZONS FOR BUSINESS GROUPS IN EAST ASIA ; 9. Chinese Business Groups: Their Origins and Developments ; 10. Conclusion: The Future of Business Groups in East Asia

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Book SynopsisThis new book from MOCOMILA, the Monetary Law Committee of the ILA, is a unique collaboration of the top academic and practitioner monetary and financial lawyers from around the world. It examines current legal issues of international monetary and financial law in the light of the current global financial crisis and consequent reforms of international and domestic financial architecture. The book deals with post-crisis financial regulation and supervision, including that of rating agencies and sovereign wealth funds, and financial crisis resolution with an analysis of bank rescue operations.Covering matters of current interest such as central banks, international payments, money laundering, and sovereign debt, this book is for banking and financial practitioners, in-house lawyers, central banks and international financial institutions as well as academics in the field of international and financial law.Trade ReviewMany valuable inputs and suggestions are provided by this volume, in which some of the most respected legal scholars on monetary and financial law have come together to share their views, expertise and experience * Mariachiara Malaguti, Common Market Law Review *Table of ContentsI. THE REFORM OF THE INTERNATIONAL FINANCIAL ARCHITECTURE; II. FINANCIAL REGULATION AND SUPERVISION: THE CRISIS TEST; III. FINANCIAL CRISIS RESOLUTION AND LITIGATION ISSUES; PART IV. MONEY, CENTRAL BANKS AND PAYMENT OBLIGATIONS

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Book SynopsisIn 2006 residential real estate prices peaked and started to fall, then threatened the world''s financial institutions in 2007, and confronted the global economy with disaster in 2008. In the past few years, millions of people have lost very substantial portions of their wealth. And while the markets have rebounded considerably, they are still far from a full recovery. Now, professional economists, policy experts, public intellectuals, and the public at large are all struggling to understand the crisis that has engulfed us.In The Financial Crisis of Our Time, Robert W. Kolb provides an essential, comprehensive review of the context within which these events unfolded, arguing that while the crisis had no single cause, housing finance played a central role, and that to understand what happened, one must comprehend the mechanism by which the housing industry came into crisis. Kolb offers a history of the housing finance system as it developed throughout the twentieth century, and especialTrade ReviewRobert Kolb's The Financial Crisis of Our Time is an exceptional and comprehensive academic contribution toward a definitive analysis and understanding of what happened to the financial world during the 2007-09 meltdown. It provides the answers to the underlying conditions, the causes, and the principal participants that combined to create the greatest disaster of our time. For any serious researcher, Kolb's analysis is indispensable. * Leo Melamed, Chairman Emeritus, CME Group *Table of ContentsPreface ; 1. Introduction: The Financial Crisis of Our Time ; Before the Great Depression ; From the Great Depression to Financial Deregulation ; From Financial Deregulation to the Savings and Loan Crisis ; 2. From Securitization to Subprime ; The Development of Securitization ; The Process of Securitization: An Overview ; Credit Enhancement ; The Subprime Difference ; 3. Before the Deluge ; Subprime Lending: To the Peak ; The Height of Subprime Lending ; 4. From the Subprime Crisis to Financial Disaster: An Overview ; The Housing Peak to Hints of Something Wrong ; The Slide Accelerates ; Mortgage-Backed Securities and Foreclosures ; No Relief in 2008 ; The Climax? ; Back From the Brink ; 5. Extinctions ; Among the Ruins ; From Countrywide to IndyMac ; IndyMac ; Washington Mutual ; Wachovia ; Bank Extinctions, Banking Consolidation, and Too-Big-to-Fail ; 6. The End of Investment Banking ; Big Brains, Big Egos, and Big Pay ; Bear Stearns ; The Bankruptcy of Lehman Brothers ; Merrill Lynch: The Herd Goes to the Abattoir ; Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley and the Week that Remade Wall Street ; 7. When Zombies Walk The Earth ; Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac ; AIG ; Citigroup: The Biggest Zombie of Them All ; Zombies and the Future ; 8. Policy Responses and The Beginnings of Recovery ; Unfurling the TARP ; The Market Reacts ; The TARP Evolves ; Introduction of the TALF ; Instituting More Programs: The Public-Private Investment Program ; Support for the Auto Industry ; Support for Homeowners ; Green Shoots in the Financial Sector ; Initial Cost Assessment ; 9. Causes of the Financial Crisis: Macroeconomic Developments and Federal Policy ; The Basic Story ; Major Asset Price Collapse ; Concentrated Exposure to the Failing Asset Class ; Lack of Transparency and Freezing of the Financial System ; Macroeconomic Developments ; Federal Stimulative Policy and Legislation ; Attempts to Combat Mortgage Lending Discrimination and to Expand Home Ownership to Minorities ; National Homeownership Strategy ; The Causal Role of the GSEs ; 10. Causes of the Financial Crisis: The Failure of Prudential Regulation ; Regulation of Depository Institutions ; Regulation of Lines of Business ; Capital Requirements ; Interaction Between Capital Regulation and Credit Derivatives ; Regulation of Size and Scope-<"Too Big to Fail>" ; Restrictions on Concentration of Risk ; Regulation of Securities Markets and Supporting Institutions ; Capital Regulations ; Off-Balance Sheet Corporate Entities ; Credit-Rating Agencies ; Mark-to-Market Accounting Rules ; Complex Financial Derivatives ; The Regulation of AIG ; Poor Regulation of Mortgage Industry ; Defects in Regulatory Architecture ; 11. Causes of the Financial Crisis: From Aspiring Homeowner to Mortgage Lender ; The Borrower ; The Lender ; The Appraiser ; The Mortgage Broker ; The Mortgage Frenzy, the Originator, and Underwriting Standards ; 12. Causes of the Financial Crisis: From Securitizer to Ultimate Investor ; Purchasing Mortgages ; Creating Securities and Obtaining Ratings ; To the Ultimate Investor ; Incentives from Securitizer to Ultimate Investors ; 13. Causes of the Financial Crisis: Financial Innovation, Poor Risk Management, and Excessive Leverage ; Financial Innovation and the Creation of Complex Instruments ; Poor Risk Management ; Excessive Leverage ; 14. Causes of the Financial Crisis: Executive Compensation and Poor Corporate Governance ; Pay at Financial Firms ; Risk-Taking and Executive Compensation in the Financial Crisis ; Incentives, Risk-Taking and Compensation at Fannie Mae ; Executive Compensation and Lehman Brothers ; Incentive Conflicts ; Corporate Governance in the Financial Crisis ; 15. Consequences of the Financial Crisis and the Future It Leaves Us ; Measuring the Damage: A Warning ; The Bailout and Its Costs ; From 2006 to 2009: Our Economic World and How it Has Changed ; Reduced Circumstances: Our Economic Future ; Beyond the Merely Economic-American Recessional or American Renewal? ; Perfecting the Fatally Flawed Regulatory Regimes of the Past ; The Financial Crisis, the Great Recession, and Institutional Failures ; Fundamental Reform? ; <"Too-Big-to-Fail>" ; Corporate Governance, Executive Compensation, and Firms' Risk-Taking ; Conclusion: Dopes, Genius, Saints, Scoundrels, and Ordinary People

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Book SynopsisIn the next twenty years the world economy will enjoy one of its strongest periods of growth.Opportunities, life expectancy, income and educational standards will all rise.The West's share of the global economic cake may get smaller, but there will be more cake than ever before.These are the predictions of Gerard Lyons, a leading international economist who spent nearly thirty years working in the City. Over the last quarter-century he has been ahead of the game in predicting the major economic trends that we now take as a given. In The Consolations of Economics, Gerard Lyons presents a lucid and accessible approach to what is happening in the global economy and what it means. The results are fascinating, refreshing -- and unusually cheering.

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Book SynopsisAn in-depth look at the problems surrounding zombie banks and their dangerous effect on the global economy The title is worthy of a B movie, but it''s also apt. Bloomberg News reporter Yalman Onaran, supported by former U.S. Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. chief Sheila Bair - who provides a foreword and numerous interviews - urge that insolvent banks both small and too big to fail be allowed to do precisely that. Reading bank balance sheets is not everyone''s idea of a good time. But Mr. Onaran, with support from Ms. Bair, does the chore and explains what it means. Mr. Onaran shows that the process of rescuing dead and dying banks is increasing systemic risk in the global banking system. And that is really more frightening than scream flicks from Tinseltown. -- Financial Post Yalman Onaran knows of putrid financial institutions, having written about them in his native Turkey so successfully he brought down a few in Istanbul in the late ''90''s. --

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Book SynopsisAt the start of the eighteenth century Louis XIV needed to remit huge sums of money abroad to support his armies during the War of the Spanish Succession. This book explains how international bankers moved French money across Europe, and how the foreign exchange system was so overloaded by the demands of war that a massive banking crash resulted.Trade Review“The present book shifts attention from the French fiscal administration and its structural and organizational inadequacies, across to the bankers who provided the huge injections of cash and especially foreign specie, needed to keep the French armies in the field. … This is a study which brings into focus the operations of a distinct group of financial entrepreneurs, showing that they were both vital to and parasitic upon the state’s military ambitions.” (David Parrott, History - Journal of the Historical Association, December, 2016)“Though this is a technical book, focused narrowly on a particular problem in international banking and state finance, Rowlands does a remarkably good job at explaining the intricacies of his subject, offering excellent introductions to the workings of the remitting system, the use of bills of exchange and the functions of international bankers. … This new book is the definitive work on international remitting in the last phase of Louis XIV’s reign, and is unlikely to be surpassed.” (John Shovlin, English Historical Review, Vol. 131 (552), October, 2016)“Dangerous and Dishonest Men presents an astonishing story of administrative incompetence, corrupt banking practices, and financial disaster. Rowlands is remarkable in his ability to understand and clarify the intricacies of early modern war finance and bring them to bear on one of the major events in French economic history.” (Thomas M. Luckett, Journal of Modern History, Vol. 88 (4), 2016)Table of ContentsIntroduction PART I: FRANCE, FOREIGN EXCHANGE AND THE LOGISTICS OF INTERNATIONAL REMITTING 1. The French Monarchy and the Foreign Exchange System in the Era of Louis XIV 2. The Logistical Geography of French Remitting 3. The Price of Foreign Exchange PART II: THE ROAD TO RUIN: FRENCH REMITTANCE BANKING IN THE WAR OF THE SPANISH SUCCESSION 4. The Gathering Storm: The Development of a Remittance System, 1700-06 5. Overloading Atlas: Samuel Bernard and the Crisis of French Banking Conclusion

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Book SynopsisPresents the empirical data of business cycles and the theories that economists have developed to explain and prevent them, and considers case studies of recessions and depressions in the United States and internationally.Despite more than two centuries of debate, a definitive explanation of the causes of economic cycles still does not exist. Economists, politicians, and policymakers have argued many well-known theories as to why these peaks and slumps occur, and cyclical recessions and depressions continue in spite of the enormous intellectual reserves working to prevent them. This timely analysis presents a comprehensive overview of global economics, assessing older theories alongside of new ways of thinking to reveal the empirical methods needed to evaluate, forecast, and prevent future crises.Educator and economist Todd Knoop provides explanations of influential macroeconomic theories that have shaped modern economics, such as Keynesian economics, Neoclassical economics, Austrian eTrade ReviewThere is much to like about this latest book by Knoop (Cornell College, Iowa). It is probably the most comprehensive, thorough, and balanced treatment of a topic that has been hotly debated in the discipline since William Stanley Jevons proposed the sunspot theory in the 1880s. The author delivers on his promise to write a non-technical narrative that is accessible to non-specialist readers. . . . This book will stir students' curiosity and encourage their research. Summing Up: Highly recommended. Upper-division undergraduates through researchers and faculty. * Choice *

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