The ongoing credit crunch represents the fi rst crisis of the age of mass securitization. One conclusion sometimes drawn is that the costs of securitization, in the form of risks to fi nancial stability, exceed the benefits. The implication is that we should return to the simpler days when...

Sterling in Decline takes the devaluations of 1931, 1949 and 1967 as a metaphor for Britain's changing position in the world economy. It traces the decline of the pound sterling from the world's pre-eminent currency, together with the dollar's rise to prominence. It also challenges the...