Warnings of the threat of an impending financial crisis are not new, but do we really know what constitutes an actual episode of crisis and how, once begun, it can be prevented from escalating into a full-blown economic collapse? Using both historical and contemporary episodes of breakdowns in financial trade, contributors to this volume draw insights from theory and empirical data, from the experience of closed and open economies worldwide, and from detailed case studies. They explore the susceptibility of American corporations to economic downturns; the origins of banking panics; and the behavior of financial markets during periods of crisis. Sever papers specifically address the current thrift crisis—including a detailed analysis of the over 500 FSLIC-insured thrifts in the southeast—and seriously challenge the value of recent measures aimed at preventing future collapse in that industry. Government economists and policy makers, scholars of industry and banking, and many in the business community will find these timely papers an invaluable reference.

A corporate guide to crisis management in volatile financial markets Current financial crises in Argentina, Japan, and Turkey are being played out on the front pages of newspapers, and these are just the most recent financial crises that have rolled across the globe in the last decade and whose far-reaching impact hurts business around the world. Dangerous Markets: Managing in Financial Crises recognizes that no global corporation or financial institution can afford to ignore the potential of a financial storm and will help top management and financial professionals navigate through this often disastrous maze. While many books discuss financial crises and their ramifications, none has presented an action plan for managing these storms—until now. Dangerous Markets: Managing in Financial Crises presents a method that allows executives and financial professionals to recognize the warning signs of a financial crisis and act appropriately before the situation spirals out of control. Based on years of research and practice in cleaning up the mess, McKinsey consultants Barton, Newell, and Wilson reveal the warning signs of potential financial catastrophes and provide unique principles that can be followed to shape and manage a strategy for survival.

This edited volume on "Global Banking, Financial Markets and Crises" contains original papers that examine issues concerning the changing role of global banks in crises. The papers in this volume also address the impact of global financial crises on multinational banking, financial markets, and emerging economies.

This paper reviews the literature on financial crises focusing on three specific aspects. First, what are the main factors explaining financial crises? Since many theories on the sources of financial crises highlight the importance of sharp fluctuations in asset and credit markets, the paper briefly reviews theoretical and empirical studies on developments in these markets around financial crises. Second, what are the major types of financial crises? The paper focuses on the main theoretical and empirical explanations of four types of financial crises—currency crises, sudden stops, debt crises, and banking crises—and presents a survey of the literature that attempts to identify these episodes. Third, what are the real and financial sector implications of crises? The paper briefly reviews the short- and medium-run implications of crises for the real economy and financial sector. It concludes with a summary of the main lessons from the literature and future research directions.

In this text an international banking expert grapples with issues that surround the trend toward financial globalization and its potential impact on financial fragility. He analyzes four major crisis experiences: Latin America, 1982-3; Mexico, 1994-5; East Asia, 1997-8; and Russia since 1998.

The 2008 financial crisis has become one of the defining features of the twenty first century’s first decade. The series of events which unfolded in the aftermath of the crisis has exposed major structural flaws in many of the financial systems around the globe, triggering a global call for legal and regulatory reforms to address the problems that have been uncovered. This book deals with a neglected angle of the 2008 financial crisis looking in-depth at the implicit effects of the 2008 crisis on the UK financial market. The book considers new trends in finance which have emerged since the crisis as well as the challenges faced by some older practices in the UK financial markets. After providing a reflective account of the history of law and creditors in the UK the book investigates the proliferation of certain forms of financing that have recently become very visible parts of the UK financial market’s structure, such as high cost short term lending and peer to peer lending. It provides legal and economic accounts of these forms of alternative lending, charting their developments, current status and critically assesses their impact on the UK financial market. Also examined are the ongoing funding difficulties faced by Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) and the suitability of the UK current legal framework to support these institutions. The book goes on to look at the viability and safety of some other post crisis trends such as banks use of Contingent Convertible Bonds (CoCos) to improve their resilience.

This book develops a new theoretical approach to the explanation of systemic financial crises in industrial and emerging market countries. In contrast to standard models, the present cyclical approach is consistent with the following three stylized facts. Firstly, systemic financial crises are a recurrent phenomenon generally accompanied by excessive boom-bust cycles. Secondly, the frequency of financial crisis cycles is very irregular. Thirdly, most financial crisis cycles are initiated by positive shocks to profit expectations which induce an unsustainable build-up of financial fragility driven by irrational exuberance. The present approach is based on a sophisticated balancesheet structure with many assets, as well as on an expectation formation scheme which combines the rational expectations hypothesis with Keynes' Beauty Contest Theory.