The financial crisis has led to a far-reaching redesign of the European regulatory and supervisory framework. Following the commitments made in the context of the G-20, but also reacting to internal shortcomings, the EU engaged in a massive program to re-regulate financial markets. The EU furthermore redesigned the structure for supervisory cooperation, initially through the European Supervisory Authorities, and later in its ambition to form the Banking Union. In The Great Financial Plumbing, Karel Lannoo systematically assesses the new regulatory and supervisory framework. The book's structure follows the big questions on the agenda: 1) What is Banking Union? 2) How have the concerns of the G-20 been addressed by the EU (oversight of credit-rating agencies, better capital for banks, the re-regulation of securities and derivatives markets, asset management, depositor protection and bank resolution)? 3) How were uniquely EU rules on state aid applied to the banking sector? This book is designed to give professionals, policy-makers and students a better understanding of the new regulatory framework and insights into the policy context that has led to the new rules governing financial markets in Europe.

With original archival documents and interviews from the US and Europe, Michelle Frasher brings the reader into the negotiating room with American, German, and French officials as they confronted the collapse of the Bretton Woods monetary system and made decisions that affected the course of European integration and the contemporary neoliberal order. She identifies crisis as the catalyst for change in international monetary policies, but argues that the causes of crisis originated from a multitude of factors such as market speculation, American hegemony, institutional flaws, and ideational conflicts among the leaders themselves. Far from a planned and consensual process, this book shows that the transformation to neoliberalism was riddled with discord and fret with trial and error. She argues that the resulting currency regime allowed governments to entrench themselves in national interests and facilitated the "marketization" of the state, where states have became both clients and participants in the financialized global economy-to the detriment of international stability. Frasher's is the first work to connect the 1960s and 1970s to the difficulties of inter-state and inter-market cooperation that have plagued the system in the last decades, and it puts the 2008 debacle into historical perspective.

The concept of the origin of money has been a topic of interest and discussion to almost all schools of economic thought. However, in spite of minor differences of interpretation, most views share an underlying core principal about the rise and origin of money, implicit in which is the central belief that barter exchange preceded the money economy. This new book offers a challenge to this belief, and argues that it is only by making this challenge that we will be in the position to accurately trace the roots of money. In an ambitious undertaking, the book has gathered and classified the major theories of the origin of money and assessed each at length, before presenting an innovative, alternative theoretical framework for the formation and the rise of money. It blends the objections made against the principal explanations of the origins of money and presents a terminological clarification between what can or cannot be classified as money. This study has wide-ranging implications, in terms of both the operation of the economy and the implementation of monetary policy, and will be of interest to all those working in the areas of finance, monetary economics, economic theory and the history of economic thought.

In the collective psyche, a financier is a capitalist. In managerial capitalism, the notion of the 'manager' emerged, and the role of the manager was distinct from the role of the 'owner'. Financial capitalism is similarly underpinned by financiers who are not the holders of the financial assets they buy, sell, trade or advise upon. Finance at Work explores the world of financiers, be they finance-oriented CEOs, CFOs, financial journalists, mergers and acquisitions' advisors or wealth managers. Part I investigates the professional trajectories of members of corporate boards and financialisation as the dissemination of financial logic outside its primary 'iron cage'; Part II responds by studying financiers at work within financial occupations or financial operations involving external actors; while Part III pursues the issue of financial boundaries by seeking out the way financial logic crosses these boundaries. Part IV takes back the hypothesis of differentiations within finance presented in Part I, and analyses the internal boundaries of asset management, wealth management and leveraged buyout (LBO) acquisitions. This book is essential reading for researchers and academics within the field of finance who aim to understand the 'spread of finance' in contemporary societies.

In Contemporary Financial Intermediation, Third Edition, Greenbaum, Thakor and Boot offer a distinctive approach to financial markets and institutions, presenting an integrated portrait that puts information at the core. Instead of simply naming and describing markets, regulations, and institutions as competing books do, the authors explore the endless subtlety and plasticity of financial institutions and credit markets. This edition has six new chapters and increased, enhanced pedagogical supplements. The book is ideal for anyone working in the financial sector, presenting professionals with a comprehensive understanding of the reasons why markets, institutions, and regulators act as they do. Readers will find an unmatched, thorough discussion of the world's financial markets and how they function.

The Bank for International Settlements (BIS), founded in 1930, works as the "Bank for Central Banks". The BIS is an international forum where central bankers and officials gather to cope with international financial issues, and a bank which invests the funds of the member countries. This book is a historical study on the BIS, from its foundation to the 1970s. Using archival sources of the Bank and financial institutions of the member countries, this book aims to clarify how the BIS faced the challenges of contemporary international financial system. The book deals with following subjects: Why and how the BIS has been founded? How did the BIS cope with the Great Depression in the 1930s? Was the BIS responsible for the looted gold incident during WWII? After the dissolution sentence at the Bretton Woods Conference in 1944, how did the BIS survive? How did the BIS act during the dollar crisis in the 1960s and the 1970s? A thorough analysis of the balance sheets supports the archival investigation on the above issues. The BIS has been, and is still an institution which proposes an "alternative views": crisis manager under the Great Depression of the 1930s, peace feeler during the WWII, market friendly bank in the golden age of the Keynesian interventionism, and crisis fighter during the recent world financial turmoil. Harmonizing the methodology of economic history, international finances and history of economic thoughts, the book traces the past events to the current world economy under financial crisis.

From an insider's position, Sir Paul Newall tells the story of Japan's links with the City of London and explains why the City was first chosen by Japan as the focal point for its overseas financial investment. This account draws upon the author's close contact with Japanese governmental and financial authorities both in the UK and Japan itself. It documents the evolution and development of this relationship, from the earliest beginnings of Japanese financial contact in the 1860s. Important to economic and financial historians, this account should also be of particular value to those dealing with Japanese companies and financial institutions, as well as to those Japanese who are working, or have worked in the City. First published in 1996, this title is part of the Bloomsbury Academic Collections series.

The globalisation of the present day world economy means that more and more people are experiencing different cultures through their work. Focusing on the real experiences of workers in Japanese transnational finance companies, this book not only throws light on this specific case, but at the same time raises timely questions and insights into the newly-emerging multicultural work experience worldwide. Japanese Bankers in the City of London reflects on contemporary discussions in sociology, anthropology and cultural studies, of individual global movement and cultural interaction.

The financial crash of 2008 showed the fragility of the financial system. A key question which surfaced in the aftermath of the global crisis was why economists were unable to predict this crash. This new volume argues that this failure can be attributed, at least in part, to the poor and inconsistent treatment of money and monetary matters in economic theory. The book takes this problem as its starting point, and from there aims to develop a more consistent treatment of the topic. Here, Hasse Ekstedt affirms that the treatment of money in economic theory has been inconsistent and that the topic of money can in fact be seen as anomalous. He argues that this anomaly depends on deficiencies in the economic theory, which through an equilibrium approach mainly perceives money as an index of measurement. In contrast, this volume puts forward the case for money as a non-equilibrium concept, and that the stability of money and financial markets are to be sought in social and institutional structures. In particular, the volume discusses the relationship between the market and public bodies, as well as addressing economic and financial stability in general and in relation to the globalized economy, particularly focussing on the problem of structural stability. In doing so, the book offers a new approach both to money and to its role in economic theory.

Since 2008, the financial sector has been the subject of extensive criticism. Much of this criticism has focused on the morality of the actors involved in the crisis and its extended aftermath. This book analyses the key moral and political philosophical issues of the crisis and relates them to the political economy of finance. It also examines to what extent the financial sector can or should be reformed. This book is unified by the view that the financial sector had been a self-serving and self-regulating elite consumed by greed, speculation and even lawlessness, with little sense of responsibility to the wider society or common good. In light of critical analysis by authors from a variety of backgrounds and persuasions, suggestions for reform and improvement are proposed, in some cases radical reform. By placing the world of finance under a microscope, this book analyses the assumptions that have led from hubris to disgrace as it provides suggestions for an improved society. Rooted in philosophical reflection, this book invites a critical reassessment of finance and its societal role in the 21st century. This book will be of interest to academics, politicians, central bankers and financial regulators who wish to improve the morality of finance.

Provides a systematic assessment of FSB operations, from standard setting to implementation review in order to identify the power wielded by government networks in global financial governance. Develops a novel theory of legislative reluctance as a limit to the power of government networks, showing its strong inferential leverage in comparison with a variety of competing explanations drawn from economics, political science, and law. Engages in the debate on the role of government networks in global governance with a well-founded but controversial argument that questions the role of national parliaments in managing global economic affairs in the public interest. Suggests a novel institutional solution to the effectiveness-legitimacy dilemma that global governance forums face, combining the advantages of functional specialization and electoral accountability.

This book seeks to explain the global financial crisis and its wider economic, political, and social repercussions, arguing that the 2007-9 meltdown was in fact a systemic crisis of the capitalist system. The volume makes these points through the exploration of several key questions: What kind of institutional political economy is appropriate to explain crisis periods and failures of crisis-management? Are different varieties of capitalism more or less crisis-prone, and can the global financial crisis can be attributed to one variety more than others? What is the interaction between the labour market and the financialization process? The book argues that each variety of capitalism has its own specific crisis tendencies, and that the uneven global character of the crisis is related to the current forms of integration of the world market. More specifically, the 2007-09 economic crisis is rooted in the uneven income distribution and inequality caused by the current financial-led model of growth. The book explains how the introduction of more flexibility in the labour markets and financial deregulation affected everything from wages to job security to trade union influence. Uneven income distribution and inequality weakened aggregate demand and brought about structural deficiencies in aggregate demand and supply. It is argued that the process of financialization has profoundly changed how capitalist economies operate. The volume posits that financial globalization has given rise to growing international imbalances, which have allowed two growth models to emerge: a debt-led consumption growth model and an export-led growth model. Both should be understood as reactions to the lack of effective demand due to the polarization of income distribution.

The aim of this work is to make available to English-language readers a translation of Jean-Baptiste Say's main texts on money and banking which were not at present accessible in English. The work includes chapters from his books taking into account the variants between the different editions, articles and hitherto unpublished manuscripts. Comprehension of these different texts is facilitated by an introduction designed to place them in their context and by a chronological table giving the main events of Say's life and editorial activity in parallel with the main political, economic and monetary events of the time.

The financial crisis that started in 2007 is a concern for the world. Some countries are in depression and governments are desperately trying to find solutions. In the absence of thorough debate on the emotions of money, bitter disputes, hatred and 'moralizing' can be misunderstood. New Perspectives on Emotions in Finance carefully considers emotions often left unacknowledged, in order to explain the socially useful versus de-civilising, destructive, nature of money. This book offers an understanding of money that includes the possible civilising sentiments. This interdisciplinary volume examines what is seemingly an uncontrollable, fragile world of finance and explains the 'panics' of traders and 'immoral panics' in banking, 'confidence' of government and commercial decision makers, 'shame' or 'cynicism' of investors and asymmetries of 'impersonal trust' between finance corporations and their many publics. Money is shown to rely on this abstract trust or 'faith', but such motivations are in crisis with 'angry' conflicts over the 'power of disposition'. Restraining influences - on 'uncivilised emotions' and rule breaking - need democratic consensus, due to enduring national differences in economic 'sentiments' even in ostensibly similar countries. Promising ideas for global reform are assessed from these cautionary interpretations. Instead of one 'correct' vision, sociologists in this book argue that corporations and global dependencies are driven by fears and normless sentiments which foster betrayal. This book is not about individuals, but habitus and market crudities. Human 'nature' or 'greed' cannot describe banks, which do not 'feel' because their motivations are not from personal psyches but organisational pressures, and are liable to switch under money's inevitable uncertainties. This more inclusive social science studies emotions as a crucial factor among others, to expand the informed public debate among policy makers, bankers, academics, students and the public.

The crisis of the current global financial order is challenging us to critically reflect on how this order has been driven, and the development outcomes produced by its central political and economic actors. There is a great deal of academic knowledge about the role of the international financial institutions, powerful states and capital markets in international development, but there is little understanding of how regional dynamics and regional institutions influence global governance and developing countries. This book offers an independent and grounded investigation concerning the political economic role of Regional Development Banks through a study of the world's leading regional development bank, the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB). The book examines the political economy of the IDB and its role in regional and national development during the neoliberalisation processes of the 1990s. In particular, the investigations explore the IDB's power in regional and national development - via its technical, political and financial interventions - to frame policy alternatives, absorb opposition forces, support specific coalition forces and justify a particular direction of development, all in order to legitimize specific political economic projects directed by market-led pro-reform coalitions aligned with global financial forces and financial development guidelines. This book will be relevant to scholars and professionals interested in the international and regional political economy of development financing.

As China began its economic reforms in the late 1970s and made a transition from planned to a market economy, corporate governance of the banking sector became an increasingly pressing issue. Further, in the aftermath of the Asian Financial Crises in the late 1990s, Chinese authorities became acutely aware of the importance of corporate governance to ensure that their banking system would not suffer similar fates to those of other Asian countries. This book examines corporate governance in city commercial banks, which are the main source of loans to the dynamic small and medium enterprises that are crucial to the development of China's economy. By the end of 2008, there were 136 city commercial banks in China, 13 of which had foreign partners, and this book clearly demonstrates the positive effect of these foreign partnerships on corporate governance practices, in addition to financial performance. With evidence from extensive interviews with 10 city commercial banks in China, Michael Tan explores the different models of corporate governance, and in turn, asks which model is most suitable to China, how are Chinese authorities overcoming problems with corporate governance, and how do these problems compare with those in other transition economies? Whilst the primary focus of this study is on China's city commercial banks, there are lessons that apply much more broadly to the industry and it therefore will be invaluable to foreign banking institutions wishing to invest in China. This book will also be of great appeal to students and scholars of Chinese business and economics, corporate governance and banking.

Environmental risk directly affects the financial stability of banks since they bear the financial consequences of the loss of liquidity of the entities to which they lend and of the financial penalties imposed resulting from the failure to comply with regulations and for actions taken that are harmful to the natural environment. This book explores the impact of environmental risk on the banking sector and analyzes strategies to mitigate this risk with a special emphasis on the role of modelling. It argues that environmental risk modelling allows banks to estimate the patterns and consequences of environmental risk on their operations, and to take measures within the context of asset and liability management to minimize the likelihood of losses. An important role here is played by the environmental risk modelling methodology as well as the software and mathematical and econometric models used. It examines banks' responses to macroprudential risk, particularly from the point of view of their adaptation strategies; the mechanisms of its spread; risk management and modelling; and sustainable business models. It introduces the basic concepts, definitions, and regulations concerning this type of risk, within the context of its influence on the banking industry. The book is primarily based on a quantitative and qualitative approach and proposes the delivery of a new methodology of environmental risk management and modelling in the banking sector. As such, it will appeal to researchers, scholars, and students of environmental economics, finance and banking, sociology, law, and political sciences.

Consumer credit borrowing - using credit cards, store cards and personal loans - is an important and routine part of many of our lives. But what happens when these everyday forms of borrowing go 'bad', when people start to default on their loans and when they cannot, or will not, repay? It is this poorly understood, controversial, but central part of both the consumer credit industry and the lived experiences of an increasing number of people that this book explores. Drawing on research from the interior of the debt collections industry, as well as debtors' own accounts and historical research into technologies of lending and collection, it examines precisely how this ever more sophisticated, globally connected market functions. It focuses on the highly intimate techniques used to try and recoup defaulting debts from borrowers, as well as on the collection industry's relationship with lenders. Joe Deville follows a journey of default, from debtors' borrowing practices, to the intrusion of collections technologies into their homes and everyday lives, to the collections organisation, to attempts by debtors to seek outside help. In the process he shows how to understand this particular market, we need to understand the central role played within it by emotion and affect. By opening up for scrutiny an area of the economy which is often hidden from view, this book makes a major contribution both to understanding the relationship between emotion and calculation in markets and the role of consumer credit in our societies and economies. This book will be of interest to students, teachers and researchers in a range of fields, including sociology, anthropology, cultural studies, economics and social psychology.

The annual Monetary Surveys published in the Midland Bank Review have become an established and authoritative source of reference for all students of money and banking and related topics, and for those concerned with general economics and current affairs. This superb volume brings together reprints of these Surveys with a selection of special articles published in the Review since the 1959 Radcliffe Report on the working of the monetary system. In his introduction the editor discusses in outline Britain's financial dilemma. The period covered is an interesting and exciting one{emru}economic conditions in the UK were swinging from achievement in the early 19605 to near calamity, and in the international monetary field policy moved from convertibility for current transactions through tighter restrictions and devaluation, to the experiments of 1971. The book is set out in four sections. The first section contains articles dealing mainly with official activities in the management of government debt, of the money supply, and of the banking system. In the second section are five articles describing and analysing London's money market operations, and examining the swift growth of non-bank financial intermediaries and the markets in which they are active, including the Eurodollar market. These are followed by the annual Monetary Surveys for the years 1959 to 1971, which tell the story of the struggle to preserve the parity of sterling, the devaluation of 1967, and the consequences for Britain's position at home and abroad; they also record developments in banking and the first effects of the new methods of credit control. The final section of appendices presents up-to-date statistics and charts and relevant documents illustrating the monetary and economic background of the period covered. This excellent text was first published in 1973.

First Published in 2005. In the decade of the sixties, which brought so many disappointments to the British people, one signal achievement stands out: the revival of "The City"-London's financial district-as a major centre of international finance. To work in the City now seems to hold the promise of moving up fast, not merely to good pay and good social standing but to an early share of responsibility. George Lewis French Bolton was born in 1900 and started work in the City before he was seventeen. This volume is a collection of works by Sir George Bolton on the revival of the City from 1957 to 1970.

Money has always represented power. For Aristotle, this power was inseparable from the exercise of justice within a community. This is why issuance of money was the prerogative of the lawful authority (government). Such a view of monetary power was widespread, and includes societies as distant as China. Over the past several centuries, however, private interests increasingly tapped into the exercise of the money power. Through gradual shifts, commercial banks have gained a legally protected right to create money through issuance of debts. The aim of this book is to unravel various layers hiding the real workings of modern money and banking systems and injustices ingrained in them. By asking what money really is, who controls it and for what purpose (why), the book provides insight into understanding of modern money and banking systems, as well as the causes of growing financialization of economies throughout the world, money manias and economic instability. The book also increases the awareness of injustices hidden in the workings of modern money and banking systems and the need for moral underpinnings of such systems. Finally, it suggests a money system which could immensely improve human, economic, and ecological conditions.

International in scope and written by a leading young Post-Keynesian economist, this book focuses on the working of money and payments in a multi-bank settlement system within which banks and non-bank financial institutions have been expanding their operations outside their countries of incorporation. Departing from conventionally held beliefs, Sergio Rossi sets off from a positive analysis of the logical origin of money, which is the essential principle of double-entry book-keeping through which banks record all debts and credits for further reference and settlement and provides theoretical and empirical advances in explaining money endogeneity for the investigation of contemporary domestic and international monetary issues. Showing that both money and banking have profound implications for real economic activities, this innovative work is essential reading, not only for scholars in monetary economics, but also for professionals concerned with monetary policy and payments system issues.

"Tower of Basel" is the first investigative history of the world's most secretive global financial institution. Based on extensive archival research in Switzerland, Britain, and the United States, and in-depth interviews with key decision-makers--including Paul Volcker, the former chairman of the US Federal Reserve; Sir Mervyn King, governor of the Bank of England; and former senior Bank for International Settlements managers and officials--Tower of Basel tells the inside story of the Bank for International Settlements (BIS): the central bankers' own bank.
Created by the governors of the Bank of England and the Reichsbank in 1930, and protected by an international treaty, the BIS and its assets are legally beyond the reach of any government or jurisdiction. The bank is untouchable. Swiss authorities have no jurisdiction over the bank or its premises. The BIS has just 140 customers but made tax-free profits of $1.17 billion in 2011-2012.
Since its creation, the bank has been at the heart of global events but has often gone unnoticed. Under Thomas McKittrick, the bank's American president from 1940-1946, the BIS was open for business throughout the Second World War. The BIS accepted looted Nazi gold, conducted foreign exchange deals for the Reichsbank, and was used by both the Allies and the Axis powers as a secret contact point to keep the channels of international finance open.
After 1945 the BIS--still behind the scenes--for decades provided the necessary technical and administrative support for the trans-European currency project, from the first attempts to harmonize exchange rates in the late 1940s to the launch of the Euro in 2002. It now stands at the center of efforts to build a new global financial and regulatory architecture, once again proving that it has the power to shape the financial rules of our world. Yet despite its pivotal role in the financial and political history of the last century and during the economic current crisis, the BIS has remained largely unknown--until now.

Sharing information and knowledge, co-innovating with clients, communities, and competitors and adopting cognitive technology, robo advisors, crowdfunding, and blockchain reflect current socio-economic behaviour. Emerging growth regions in Asia, demographic shifts, intergenerational wealth transfers and increasing regulations are other trends that amplify each other, disrupt the client journey, and affect the entire economy. Moreover, unprecedentedly, new market entrants outside the financial sector, be it Amazon, Apple, Google, or Facebook, are increasingly expanding their scale and scope to offer financial services. Featuring case studies of Chinese business ecosystems, such as Alibaba/Ant Financial, that have transformed from displaying domestic and organic growth to rapid global expansion, this highly readable book gives you glimpses of how banking services are evolving. We break down everything you need to know about the foray of challenger banks into the financial services. You learn how they link health to wealth data and gain advantages through analytical capabilities in the race to attract sophisticated clients with highly personalized experiences. The next level of creating and capturing value for clients and businesses involves platform models embedded in cross-sector ecosystems. Digital platforms are the crucial entry point to global markets, creating value for multiple sides. They leverage self-driving ecosystems that go beyond linear value chains applied in traditional business models as the sources of growth in an interconnected world are collaboration and network effects. The winners will be those who open up and engage themselves in an ecosystem that transcends organizational boundaries and performs without sector borders because every actor contributes to the value constellation of the system. The book provides practitioners and scholars with new insights into open and holistic business models, where competition in future will be between ecosystems rather than at the company level. It encourages leaders to expand their skills and think through the lens of the ecosystem theory while developing compelling strategies to serve the next-generation clients.

After fifty years the Deutsche Bundesbank - the central bank that dominated European monetary affairs - has stepped down to entrust monetary policy to the European Central Bank (ECB). This is the first research work to thoroughly explore the lessons to be learned from the Bundesbank by the ECB, in areas such as price stability and political interference.