State of the Nation

Eamonn Butler is interviewed on his most recent book, The Rotten State of Britain The way to grow poor, the way to grow rich. By his own admission, Eamonn Butler spent several fruitless years trying to generate enthusiasm from publishers for his book chronicling what he perceives as our nation’sContinue reading>

Hong Kong Remains No. 1

Wallace Chan expands on Hong Kong’s highest level of economic freedom in Economic Freedom of the World: 2009 Annual Report Economic freedom is the key building block of the most prosperous nations. Hong Kong continues its reign as the most economically free region on the globe, as it once againContinue reading>

Should Mortgages be Securitized?

Arnold King argues that mortgage securitization should be allowed to die in order to keep taxpayers from inheriting more risk The Humpty-Dumpty of mortgage securitization. Like Humpty-Dumpty, mortgage securitization has taken a big fall. There is a widespread presumption that government policy, if not all the king’s horses and allContinue reading>

Changing the Rules of the Game

Andrew P. Morriss dispels the bad reputation that onshore governments have given offshore financial centres and warns that in efforts to resist competition, onshores risk further damaging their economies Demonstrators react to onshore politicians blaming offshore financial centres for “contributing to the crisis” and calling for regulatorymeasures to limit offshores’Continue reading>

Reflections on Global Legal Centers

Hong Kong is competitive not only as an attractive place to do business but, in its distinct way, also an attractive place to live. Larry E. Ribstein exposes the wider motivations behind current international pressure to alter Hong Kong’s tax law From sanctions to blacklists, there is international pressure toContinue reading>