Category Archives: Currencies

Louis Proyect: Once More on IT and a Return to the Drachma

Why selling magic sparkle ponies, in the form of presenting a conversion to the drachma as easy when it isn’t, makes for bad IT and even worse policy prescriptions.

Michael Pettis: Do Markets Determine the Value of the RMB?

A thorough discussion of the background and implications of the so-far modest devaluation of the RMB.

Does a Strong Dollar Hurt Emerging Markets?

Conventional wisdom has it that strengthening dollar hurts emerging markets via a sudden exodus of host money. A new study argues that real economy forces are a bigger driver, specifically lower commodity prices.

Grexit Stumbling Block: International Courts Likely to Rule Against Forced Contract Redenomination

If Greece decides to exit the euro and abrogate contracts, it is not likely to fare well in the tidal wave of lawsuits and arbitration cases that would ensue.

Libor Trader Sentenced to 14 Years for Market Manipulation. So What About His Bosses?

While it’s gratifying to see former UBS trader Tom Hayes go to jail for large-scale Libor bid rigging, his bosses had to have known what he was up to. So when will we see their indictments?

Testing the Global Central Bank Swap Network

Central bank swaps are in some ways quite similar to a standard commercial FX swap, but the differences are important and significant.

More on the IT Implications of a Grexit

Why it will probably take no less than three years to do the IT implementation related to a Grexit.

Mathew D. Rose: The Crisis In Europe Has Only Just Begun

The larger political and economic costs of the crisis in Greece and Europe are only starting to come to light.

Don Quijones: The Mother of All Storms Builds Over Catalonia’s Independence

What first appeared as reduced tensions between Madrid and Spain’s north-eastern province was merely the calm before the mother of all storms.

Once Again on the IT Challenges in Converting to the Drachma

Why the left is not doing itself, or the Greek people, any favors by minimizing the difficulties in converting to the drachma.

Gaius Publius: Goldman Sachs – Masters of the Eurozone

Goldman Sachs wields more power in the Eurozone than you think. And it’s not hard to guess who benefits.

Ugly Greek Bank Resolutions and Depositor Bail-Ins Coming Soon

Why the coming bank bail-ins in Greece are going to be far more costly in economic terms than most observers imagine.

The History of European Macroeconomics and Exchange Rate Policy

This is a very readable and important account of how Europe came to embrace some of the key elements of its current monetary policy and exchange rate straitjacket.

Odds Favor a Greece Deal Failure and Defacto Grexit

The odds now favor the tentative deal struck over the weekend to “rescue” Greece, which many have correctly depicted as a brutal economic colonization of Greece by its lenders, coming unraveled.

Convert to the Drachma – Piece of Cake. Right…

Those who consider a Grexit, meaning reintroducing drachma, to be a sine qua non for Greece moving forward have no idea of what that entails.