Failing banks, frozen credit markets, a faltering economy -- sound familiar?
That was the situation in Sweden in the early 1990s. One of the key architects of the Swedish government's response was Stefan Ingves, who will speak at Duke on Tuesday, April 28, beginning at 5:30 p.m. in the Fitzpatrick Center's Schiciano Auditorium on West Campus.
The public talk, "Monetary Policy in a Financial Crisis," is free. It is part of the Allen Starling Johnson, Jr. Distinguished Lecture Series.
"He's one of the world's experts in finance restructuring in a crisis," said Charles Becker, a Duke professor of economics. "He's one of the top five people in this area."
Becker said he expects Ingves to address options for government intervention -- loans, nationalization and recapitalization -- in the private financial sector.
Ingves is currently governor of Sweden's central bank, Riksbank, having served as a deputy minister of finance for Sweden and as a director of the International Monetary Fund. He comes to Duke from a meeting in Washington, D.C., of finance ministers of the IMF and World Bank.
Becker says there are parallels between Sweden's financial turbulence in the '90s and today's economic contraction. He said Sweden's response should serve as a model.
"It was as quick and painless as possible," he said. "It was very decisive for state action."