Member Views

Antonio DeLorenzo

This week we would like to also welcome new member Antonio DeLorenzo, product consultant at IDB Lab at the Inter-American Development Bank.

He is the former head of ING Labs Asia and the former director of policy and advocacy at Swift, the Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication.

We appreciate his support for our work and mission, and we look forward to his engagement!

Mark Bergman

This week we would like to welcome new member Mark Bergman, president of 7Pillars Global Insights.

Mark stepped down in July 2021 as a partner of the international law firm Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP. Now through 7Pillars Global Insights, he comments and briefs on a range of current political, geopolitical, and regulatory topics, including mitigating the effects of climate change and combatting disinformation, extremism, and weaponization of hate.

Wall Street Journal Bestselling Business Books

BWC member Paul Sheard's new book The Power of Money recently reached The Wall Street Journal's bestselling list for business books.

Bretton Woods Committee congratulates Paul on this achievement!

Master's Award for Professional Excellence

BWC member Jonathan Everhart was recently selected for the Brown University School of Professional Studies Master's Award for Professional Excellence for his significant accomplishments in the fields of finance, the digital economy, and ESG.

Bretton Woods Committee congratulates Jonathan on his selection for this award!

De-dollarization or Re-Dollarization? The Fate of the Dollar in the Internet Age

The U.S. dollar, or greenback, is a ubiquitous, nearly universally accepted global currency. Like
the country that backs it, the dollar is endowed with special superpowers that are equal
measure historical flukes, as they are a byproduct of steady hands, institutional trust, network
effects and, the quiet part, military might. Just as the U.S. mainland is protected by two oceans,
the U.S. dollar is buttressed by both natural and historical advantages. The natural ones are

The great IP debate in Canada

BWC member Daniela Bassan provided an update where she states that policy intervention is needed to close the, "significant gap in domestic-owned intellectual property in Canada ... and corresponding levels of R&D investment"

The Dangers of Money Market Funds

BWC member Hung Tran was recently interviewed by NPR Planet Money's The Indicator to help break down the essential things to know about money market funds, why they're important to the financial system, and why a default could destabilize this crucial piece of infrastructure.

Businesses Should Not Be Shocked By China’s Aggressive Decoupling Offensive

BWC member Harry Broadman writes that "executives... should not have been taken aback" by China's aggressive policy.

"They either did not do their homework... or they chose to ignore information presented to them about the increasing downside risks."

Kenya Debt Doomsayer Dodge Backfires

“'No default' – as President Ruto’s team loudly proclaims – is a catchy slogan, but skirting it alone will not change investor minds inured to debt-equity market, state-run company and bank-supervisor dysfunction", writes BWC member Gary Kleiman.

The Dollar (Again)

BWC member Warren Coats reminds us why the dollar is so dominant.

A reserve of payment currency "requires having safe assets with stable values... with deep and liquid markets in which they can be bought and sold."

"Currently the US dollar wins hands down."