Executive Summary; 

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This Symposium is an important thought leadership event dedicated to discussing and debating what more can be done to mitigate the risk of yet another financial crisis. 

It is now some 12 years since Lehman Brothers collapsed; an event so shocking that it sent the world economy into cardiac arrest.

And of course, we are still in the depths of a global recession caused by Covid-19. 

It is difficult to escape the harsh reality that both of the most recent financial crises were predicted; and in both cases it seems that the warning signs were ignored. 

This begs the question: what exactly are experts saying now, about potential triggers of future crises that shouldn’t be ignored?

…and if their warnings are being ignored; why?

Hundreds of thousands of pages of analysis have been published about the Global Financial Crisis; perhaps the most shocking statistic is that according to Oxford University research it resulted in an additional 100,000 suicides – caused by the consequences of people losing their jobs, homes, and resultant family break-ups.

Reckless risk-taking by banks around the world had magnified the market failings of the world’s financial ecosystem. Massive bailouts of financial institutions and other palliative monetary and fiscal policies were employed to prevent a possible complete collapse of the world financial system. The Global Financial crisis was nonetheless followed by a global economic downturn, the Great Recession and a catastrophic crisis in the banking system across Europe.

Capitalism was in complete crisis; just as communism had been some 19 years earlier.

In the USA, the Dodd-Frank Act was enacted in the aftermath of the crisis to “promote the financial stability of the United States” and the Basel III capital and liquidity standards were adopted by countries around the world.

But how much of that protective policymaking has since been reversed?

…and why were even people like Bill Gates, with his startlingly accurate prediction of a pandemic-triggered financial crisis, not taken seriously by those in charge of the system; the very people charged with taking care of something of immeasurable importance to us all – financial stability itself. 

Financial Stability underpins our very way of life. Democracy, Capitalism and even Freedom rely on financial stability to exist; we must never take them for granted. 

It’s a scary thought to acknowledge that there are alternatives to all three – just as tens of millions of people around the world can tell us, because they live within the alternatives every day of their lives. 

There is so much to be looked at when considering the causes and consequences of the last two Financial Crises; and even more importantly the big question: 

“Can we be sure that enough is being done to prevent yet another crisis?” 

Consider these factors, that most agree have played a part in one or both of the last two disasters:

 – Widespread ignoring of risk management data on pandemic risks

 – Over-easy credit conditions

 – Weak and fraudulent underwriting practices

 – Predatory lending

 – Growth of the housing bubble

 – The subprime mortgage bubbles 

 – Financial over-innovation and over-complexity

 – Collateralized debt obligations

 – The commodities boom

 – Over-leveraging by institutions around the world

 – The ‘Too big to fail’ mind-set

 – Deregulation

 – Incorrect pricing of risk

 – Boom and collapse of the shadow banking system

 – The inherent instability and systemic risks of crises within capitalism

 – Widespread failure of economic forecasting – economists ‘asleep at the wheel’

 – The shouts by those who did see it coming not being heard; or perhaps even worse – heard but completely ignored

 – Governance failures

 – Conflicts of interests

 – Debt dependency

 – Behavioural finance issues and the underlying human conditions of fear and greed 

 – Opaque credit markets

 – A misunderstanding of the organic nature of contagion risk

 – Short-termism

 – Poor stewardship of capital

 – Over-leniency towards those who are to blame

 – A lack of court proceedings and prosecutions

Here’s a couple of interesting questions: 

“How many of those factors are rooted in a lack of transparency?”

“How many of those factors are actually still with us today?”

The socio/political fallout of the Global Financial Crisis has been staggeringly impactful. Consider these issues:

 – Austerity policies being implemented around the world

 – The rise of Donald Trump

 – Brexit? …and so much more.

The consequences of the Crash have been unimaginably far-reaching, with a devastating impact on many aspects of life around the world. 

We’ll be taking a look at key questions such as: 

 – What really caused the Global Financial Crisis?

 – Who was “asleep at the wheel”?

 – Have the lessons been learned?

 – Have the Regulators done enough to prevent a repeat?

 – Who is actually responsible for preventing another Crash?

 – Could it happen all over again?

 – What has been the true impact of Quantitative Easing – and who is really paying the price for it?

 – Could greater transparency reduce the chances of a reoccurrence?” 

 – Does the current pandemic-triggered crisis mean the chances of having another financial ecosystem-crisis are reduced? – or could we have the “perfect storm” i.e, the nightmare scenario of one crisis starting before another has finished; double-trouble so to speak

 – Could the ‘worst case scenario” just described cause a complete meltdown of our system as we know it?

Our overall purpose for the event is to shine a very bright light onto this important topic; in keeping with the TTF’s overall mission which is to encourage ongoing reform of the financial services sector, so that it serves society better. 

All in all, this symposium is a “not to be missed” event for anybody keen to stay in touch with the complex issues surrounding financial stability, related policymaking and regulatory interventions.