About the Financial Markets Working Group
To stay informed about the financial crisis and policies dealing with economic recovery, visit Economic Recovery Digest. We keep this web resource updated daily and frequently! Make a comment on any news story or opinion piece while you’re there.
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Ongoing financial market turmoil is leading policy makers and the public to contemplate increasingly complex regulation – in other words, crisis will lead to action. But without a sound understanding of both the causes of recent instability and the effects of proposed policies, action is likely to lead to unintended consequences and undesired outcomes.
Drawing upon the Mercatus Center’s long-standing expertise in regulatory analysis and research into regulatory outcomes, the Financial Markets Working Group combines academic research on finance and banking with a deep understanding of the regulatory policy process to offer productive ideas to address the serious problems in financial markets.
By marshalling their collective knowledge and focusing on identifying the appropriate role for regulation and markets, the members of the Financial Markets Working Group provide policy options that encourage:
innovation within a vibrant financial services industry;
greater government and private sector transparency;
well-functioning and dynamic capital markets; and
reduction of unnecessary systemic risk.
The Financial Markets Working Group is made up of academic experts and policy practitioners working collaboratively to produce Mercatus Policy Series, academic journal articles, testimony, and consultation to policymakers in order to greatly improve policy outcomes.
Working Group Members
Donald Boudreaux, Senior Education Advisor, Chairman of Department of Economics, George Mason University
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Tyler Cowen, General Director, Holbert C. Harris Chair of Economics, George Mason University
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Veronique de Rugy, Senior Research Fellow
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Jerry Ellig, Senior Research Fellow
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Steve Horwitz, Affiliated Senior Scholar, Professor of Economics, St. Lawrence University
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Garett Jones, Senior Scholar, Assistant Professor of Economics, George Mason University
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Arnold Kling , Former economist, Federal Reserve and Freddie Mac
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Andrew P. Morriss, Senior Scholar, H. Ross & Helen Workman Professor of Law and Business, University of Illinois
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Sarah Nutter, Associate Professor, School of Management, George Mason University
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Russell Roberts, J. Fish and Lillian F. Smith Professor of Economics Chair, Professor of Economics, George Mason University
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Houman B. Shadab, Associate Professor of Law, New York Law School
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J.W. Verret, Assistant Professor, George Mason University School of Law
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Lawrence H. White, Professor of Economics, George Mason University
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Lawrence J. White, Arthur E. Imperatore Professor of Economics, New York University's Stern School of Business
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Bruce Yandle, Distinguished Adjunct Professor of Economics, Dean Emeritus, Clemson College of Business and Behavioral Sciences
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Todd Zywicki, Senior Scholar, Professor of Law, George Mason University School of Law
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Research
Potential Restrictions on Title Lending
November 2009
By Todd Zywicki and Gabriel Okolski
Loans are Not Toasters: The Problems with a Consumer Financial Protection Agency
October 2009
By Todd Zywicki and Stefanie Haeffele-Balch
A Brief History of Credit Rating Agencies: How Financial Regulation Entrenched this Industry's Role in the Subprime Mortgage Debacle of 2007-2008
October 2009
By Lawrence J. White
The Housing Market Crash
September 2009
By Todd Zywicki and Gabriel Okolski
Not What They Had In Mind: A History of Policies That Produced the Financial Crisis of 2008
September 2009
By Arnold Kling
Will the Stimulus Bill Crowd Out Good Economics
September 2009
By Garett Jones and Veronique de Rugy
The Depression and the Failure of Impersonal Trust: What Have We Really Learned from the Great Depression
August 2009
By John Nye
Credit Default Swaps and Regulatory Reform
August 2009
By Houman Shadab
Talking the Talk, or Walking the Walk? Outcome-Based Regulation of Transnational Investment
Winter of 2009
By Jerry Ellig and Houman Shadab
A Flawed Regulatory Concept: The Community Reinvestment Act
July 2009
By Lawrence J. White
The Case Against New Restrictions on Payday Lending
July 2009
By Todd J. Zywicki
The Role of Ideal Types in Austrian Business Cycle Theory
June 2009
By Gene Callahan and Steven Horwitz
The Microeconomic Foundations of Macroeconomic Disorder: An Austrian Perspective on the Great Recession of 2008
June 2009
By Steven Horwitz
The Ordinary Economics of an Extraordinary Crisis
June 2009
By Peter Boettke and William Luther
What Happened to 'Efficient Markets'?
June 2009
By Peter Boettke
A Simple Theory of the Financial Crisis; or, Why Fischer Black Still Matters
June 2009
By Tyler Cowen
Mercatus on Policy: Systemic Risk and the U.S. Financial System
May 29, 2009.
By Margaret Polski
The Unintended consequences of International Bank Capital Standards
April 30, 2009.
By Arnold Kling
The Value of Institutions for Financial Markets: Evidence from Emerging Markets
April 20, 2009.
By Thomas Stratman and Bernardin Akitoby
Mercatus on Policy: Bank Risk Management
April 14, 2009
By Margaret Polski
Mercatus on Policy: Implications and Analysis of Government Shareholding in the Financial Sector
April 13, 2009
By J.W. Verret
Guilty by Association? Regulating Credit Default Swaps
March 27, 2009
By Houman B. Shadab
Mercatus on Policy: Understanding Capital and Leverage in the Financial Markets Debacle of 2007 - 2008
February 6, 2009
By Lawrence J. White
Lost Trust: The Real Cause of the Financial Meltdown
February 3, 2009
By Bruce Yandle
Mercatus on Policy: Hedge Funds and the Financial Crisis
January 21, 2009
By Houman B. Shadab
The Main Street Economic Recovery Proposal: Will It Bring Us Out of Recession?
December 29, 2008
By Eileen Norcross and Frederic Sautet
Facilitated Market Solutions for Social Problems
September 16, 2008
By Andrew Perraut and Richard Williams
Mercatus On Policy: Subprime Lending
September 9, 2008
By Todd Zywicki and Andrew Perraut
An Artifact of Law: U.S. Prohibition of Retail Hedge Funds
August 15, 2008
By Houman B. Shadab
Fending for Themselves: Creating a U.S. Hedge Fund Market for Retail Investors
August 7, 2008
By Houman B. Shadab
Outcome-Based Regulation of Transnational Investment
April 11, 2008
By Houman B. Shadab and Jerry Ellig
The Law and Economics of Hedge Funds: Financial Innovation and Investor Protection
March 4, 2008
By Houman B. Shadab
FMWG: More Research...
Additional Resources
Research Summary: Addressing Current Proposals to Monitor Systemic Risk
August 7 2009.
By Margaret Polski
Research Summary: The Consumer Financial Protection Agency
August 7 2009.
By Todd Zywicki
Research Summary: The Obama Administration's Proposal for Financial Regulatory Reform
June 2009
By Financial Markets Working Group scholars
Research Summary: Cramdown: Creating Bigger Problems in Addressing the Foreclosure Crisis?
April 2009
By Todd Zywicki
October 28, 2009: "The vices and Virtues of Limiting Executive Compensation," delivered by Prof. Russell Roberts (Congressional Testimony)
August 5, 2009: "Examining Proposals to Enhance the Regulation of the Credit Rating Agencies," delivered by Lawrence J. White (Congressional Testimony)
July 29, 2009: "The Misdirection of Current Corporate Governance Proposals," delivered by J.W. Verret (Congressional Testimony)
July 15, 2009: "Testimony on the Consumer Financial Protection Agency," delivered by Todd J. Zywicki (Congressional Testimony)
July 13, 2009: "The Legitimacy of Political Intelligence Trading and the Threat of Insider Trading by the Treasury Department," delivered by J.W. Verret (Congressional Testimony)
June 11, 2009: "Unintended Consequences of Executive Compensation Regulation Threatens to Worsen the Financial Crisis" delivered by J.W. Verret (Congressional Testimony)
June 3, 2009: "The Present Condition and Future Status of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac" delivered by Lawrence J. White (Congressional Testimony)
May 13, 2009: "Flaws in the AIG Trust Agreement and Implications for Pending Citigroup and Other TARP Trusts" delivered by J.W. Verret (Congressional Testimony)
April 15, 2009: "Roundtable to Examine Oversight of Credit Rating Agencies" delivered by Lawrence J. White (SEC Statement)
April 15, 2009: "Examining Systemic Risk" by Margaret Polski (Presentation)
April 14, 2009: "Understanding the Financial Crisis IV: The Geithner Plan" by J.W. Verret and Garett Jones (Presentation)
March 18, 2009: "A Quarterly Economic Update: March 2009" by Bruce Yandle (Presentation)
March 17, 2009: "Stimuluating Accountability" by Jerry Brito, Jerry Ellig, and Hon. Maurice McTigue (Presentation)
March 11, 2009: "Circuit City Unplugged: Did Chapter 11 Fail to Save 34,000 Jobs?" delivered by Todd J. Zywicki (Congressional Testimony)
March 3, 2009: "Understanding our Current Tax System" by Garett Jones and Sarah Nutter (Presentation)
February 12, 2009: "Modernizing Consumer Protection in the Financial Regulatory System: Strengthening Credit Card Protections" delivered by Todd J. Zywicki (Congressional Testimony)
February 12, 2009: "Understanding the Financial Crisis III: Laying out the TARP" by Daniel Kaufmann, Garett Jones, and J.W. Verret (Presentation)
January 22, 2009: "Proposed Mortgage Modifications in Bankruptcy Code" submitted by Todd J. Zywicki (Congressional Testimony)
January 14, 2009: "Understanding the Financial Crisis II" by Bruce Yandle, Todd Zywicki, and J.W. Verret (Presentation)
January 13, 2009: "The State of our Economy: A Quarterly Report" by Bruce Yandle (Presentation)
December 9, 2008: "Collapse of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac" delivered by Arnold Kling (Congressional Testimony)
November 18, 2008: "Understanding the Financial Crisis" by Sarah Nutter, Houman Shadab, and Todd Zywicki
November 13, 2008: "Hedge Funds and Financial Markets" delivered by Houman B. Shadab (Congressional Testimony)
Watch Houman B. Shadab's Testimony on CNBC
Media
Todd Zywicki discusses the Consumer Financial Protection Agency with ReasonTV, September 1, 2009.
"Will Time Prove Ben Bernanke Wrong?" by Russ Roberts, National Public Radio, August 25, 2009.
"Polluting us with Debt," by Steven Horwitz, The Tampa Bay Online, August 23, 2009.
Arnold Kling predicts slow job growth and inflation in his economic forecast published by Pajamas Media, August 9, 2009.
"How a Little Inflation Could Help a Lot," by Tyler Cowen, The New York Times, August 1, 2009.
"Destroying Jobs in Order to Save Them," by Veronique de Rugy, Reason Online, to be included in August/September 2009 edition.
"A Good Kind of Deficit," Donald J. Boudreaux, The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, July 30, 2009.
"The Obama Financial Regulation Reform Proposal: The Good and the Not-So-Good," by Lawrence J. White, FinReg21, July 20, 2009.
"The Obama Administration Proposals for Financial Regulatory Reform: A Critical Audit," by Arnold Kling, FinReg21, July 20, 2009.
"Let's Treat Borrowers Like Adults: The Problems with a Financial Products Safety Panel," Todd J. Zywicki, The Wall Street Journal, July 8, 2009.
In a recent interview with the Economist, Tyler Cowen comments on the current economic downturn, July 5, 2009.
"The Dangers of Regulating Executive Pay," Donald J. Boudreaux, June 24, 2009.
"Making Financial Regulation Work: What Would Have Helped," by Arnold Kling, The Hearing, The Washington Post, June 15, 2009.
"Systemic Trouble," by Donald J. Boudreaux, The Tribune Review, June 3, 2009.
Eileen Norcross on C-Span on an Economic Stimulus Special, May 28, 2009.
"A Demand for Coordination," by Donald J. Boudreaux, discusses the complex economic coordination processes that occur to ensure a healthy economy, The Tribune-Review, May 28, 2009.
"Chrysler and the Rule of Law," by Todd J. Zywicki, cautions that the Chrysler bankruptcy poses challenges to the rule of law, The Wall Street Journal, May 13, 2009.
"There's Work to be Done but Congress Opts Out," by Tyler Cowen, notes Congress' distance on major financial policy issues that will add up to trillions of dollars in potential commitments and guarantees, The New York Times, May 9, 2009.
J.W. Verret is interviewed on NewsChannel8 regarding banks' stress tests, May 6, 2009.
Todd Zywicki talks about the Credit Card Bill of Rights, on the Diane Rehm show on WAMU 88.5, May 5, 2009.
"When do Deficits Matter?" by Veronique de Rugy explores the current debate on deficit spending, Reason, May 2009.
"Let's Hold Obama to His Promise of Transparency," by Veronique de Rugy and Eileen Norcross urges a more transparent account of the government's expenditure, The Wall Street Journal, April 29, 2009.
"Economics in Many Lessons: Ask the Protectionists," by Donald J. Boudreaux, poses questions that counter protectionist policies, The Tribune-Review, April 25, 2009.
"Last Man Standing" by Tyler Cowen provides a narrative of the resilience of the American economic system, Wilson Quarterly, Spring Edition.
"Important Principles for a New Financial Regulatory System," by Houman Shadab, lays out three key principles that policy makers need to think about, CBS Money Watch, April 17, 2009.
"Why Didn't Regulators See the Current Crisis Coming?" notes that since firms saw the crisis, it is less useful to give regulators broader powers as they didn't foresee the current crisis, by Houman Shadab, CBS Money Watch, April 15, 2009.
"Don't Blame all the Shadow Banks," by Houman Shadab cautions that not all lightly regulated companies and instruments pose thesame risks, CBS Money Watch, April 15, 2009.
Russ Roberts interviews Don Boudreaux on Econ Talk about the microfoundations of macroeconomics and the Austrian Theory of Business Cycles. April 13, 2009.
Tyler Cowen explains his pessimism for an early economic rebound in a New York Times blog, April 6, 2009.
"The Chess Game of Financial Regulation," by Arnold Kling argues that the responses to the previous two crises, helped to lay the groundwork for the next, FinReg21, April 6, 2009.
"Why Creditors Should Suffer, Too," by Tyler Cowen notes that proposals intended to reformn the financial system protect creditors and counterparties from their own mistakes, The New York Times, April 4, 2009.
"The Protectionism the G-20 Doesn't Want You to Know About," by Donald J. Boudreaux underscores the point that economic stimulus packages contain protectionist policies, Foreign Policy Magazine, April 3, 2009.
"Economics in Many Lessons: Answer before Intervening" by Donald J. Boudreaux raises pertinent questions about government intervention, The Tribune-Review, March 31, 2009.
"Globalization: Slowed but not Stopped" by Tyler Cowen discusses the current trends in globalization, McKinsey & Company, March 25, 2009.
"Keep the Banks Private," by Donald Boudreaux argues against the government taking over ailing banks, USA Today blog, March 9, 2009.
"Why the Bailout is Self-Defeating," by J.W. Verret notes that the form of equity Treasury is taking will not bolster public confidence in banks, Forbes, March 5, 2009.
"Fiscal Double Dipping" by Veronique de Rugy and Alex Bright discuss the increase in spending programs proposed by the President, National Review Online, March 5, 2009.
The Charleston Regional Business Journal (03/04) cites Bruce Yandle's monthly economic report.
"Lost Trust: How do we Move from Panic to Uncertainty to Trust," by Bruce Yandle, maintains that to foster trust in the economic system, there must be quiet, measurable action. Greenville Online, February 27, 2009.
Lawrence J. White is quoted by Reuters (02/26) on his views about the outlook of home sales.
"Halve the Deficit? Good Luck, Obama," by Russell Roberts notes that President Obama will have to fight with his own party to cut the deficit, NPR, February 25, 2009.
"Katrina Responses and the Bailout" by Garett Jones and Dan Rothschild argues that Washington is using a similar recipe to respond to the financial crisis as it did with the Katrina crisis, Forbes, February 25, 2009.
"Would Keynes Have Supported the Stimulus Bill?" by Arnold Kling, The American, February 23, 2009
"Financial Crisis to Slow Convergence of Hedge Funds and Private Equity, but not for Long," by Houman Shadab, AllAboutAlpha, February 20, 2009.
"The Forgotten People are Already 'Doing Something' for Economy Recovery," by Steven Horwitz, DC EXaminer, February 13, 2009.
"Don't Let Judges Tear Up Mortgage Contracts" by Todd Zywicki explains that mortgage modifications by bankruptcy judges will worsen the credit crunch, The Wall Street Journal, February 13, 2009.
"Why the Stimulus Plan Won't Work" by Veronique de Rugy, Reason, February 13, 2009.
"The Camel in the Tent" by Don Boudreaux discusses the bad precedent that executive compensation caps and other restrictions are setting, Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, February 11, 2009.
"Dissatisfaction Guaranteed" by Veronique de Rugy draws attention to the government's $8 trillion dollars worth of loan guarantees, Reason, March 2009.
"800 Billion Reasons to be Worried" by Veronique de Rugy notes that the current version of the Stimulus bill recently passed by the Senate will not be stimulative, Reason, February 10, 2009.
In an interview with the Daily Beast (02/10), Tyler Cowen shares his views on Treasury's Financial Rescue Plan.
"In Defense of Regulatory Complexity" by Lawrence J. White, notes that financial and regulatory innovation is better served in a diverse environment, Forbes, February 3, 2009.
FMWG: More Media...
Contact
Media Requests: Catherine Behan, Communications Manager, 703-993-4960, cbehan1@gmu.edu
More Information: Satya Thallam, Director of the Financial Markets Working Group, 703-993-8921, sthallam@gmu.edu
