In The News

A New Tool to Fight Genocide

John Prendergast and Brad Brooks-Rubin December 29, 2016
Traditional methods for combatting crimes against community include United Nations peacekeeping efforts, the International Criminal Court and humanitarian aid. Ongoing prevalence of civil war and genocide in central and eastern Africa, however, indicates that the world must seek new and more effective solutions. Restrictions on money laundering may be the best way to “address the root causes of...

China Central Bank Extends Emergency Loans to Financial Firms

Rachel Rosenthal and Yifan Xie December 22, 2016
In mid-December, the People’s Bank of China, China’s central bank, pumped more than US$80 billion into the bond and money market sectors of its financial industry. The bank was responding to a precipitous drop in bond prices “that led authorities to temporarily halt trading,” reports the Wall Street Journal. Chinese investors worry about the US Federal Reserve’s embrace of increased rate...

US Federal Reserve Raises Rates

Harriet Torry December 14, 2016
The Federal Reserve, seeing improvements in the US economy and reduced unemployment rates, not only raised its benchmark short-term interest rate for the first time in a year but anticipates more rate hikes in 2017. The board’s vote was unanimous. Rates were kept near zero for seven years since the 2007-2008 financial crisis until a small rise in December 2015. “Fed officials said an improving...

The Complexity of Inequality

Michael Heise December 13, 2016
Governments delayed in accepting or tackling inequality as a major challenge. The concept “remains poorly defined, its effect is highly variable, and its causes hotly debated,” notes Michael Heise, chief economist of Allianz SE, for Project Syndicate. Inequality is concentrated in the developed world, and wealth is more broadly distributed at the global level: Since 2000, the ranks of the middle...

Brexit’s Big Winner? It Could Be New York City

David Francis October 21, 2016
Many in the London banking industry are asserting that the city’s financial operations could relocate to New York City once Prime Minister Theresa May initiates Brexit. Banking is crucial to the British economy and accounts for up to 10 percent of national GDP, reports David Francis for Foreign Policy. He lists reasons for relocating. London bankers had opposed Brexit and can’t help but wonder...

Banks Miss Out as Chinese Firms Do DIY Deal Advice

Sumeet Chatterjee and Denny Thomas August 18, 2016
While Chinese tech mergers and acquisitions doubled to more than $60 billion in 2015, fee volume rose by just over half as much. “China's cashed-up and ambitious technology firms are increasingly spurning external advisers on acquisitions and investments in foreign companies,” report Sumeet Chatterjee and Denny Thomas. The technology firms pass over investment bankers who typically handle...

Food for Thought

Nayan Chanda August 15, 2016
US presidential candidates, sensing anti-trade sentiment among voters, rely on populist strategies, much like Indian Prime Minister Modi’s “Make in India” campaign, encouraging manufacturers to create jobs close to home. “Even if protectionist urges dwindle after the election, anti-trade sentiment will linger to the detriment of export-dependent emerging economies,” writes Nayan Chanda in his...