Peru continues to stumble from crisis to crisis, scandal to scandal, and president to president. In Argentina, one of the towering figures of Latin America’s political left, Cristina Fernández de Kirchner, just received a 6-year prison sentence.More
The Central Bank of Nigeria Just Gave a Whole New Meaning to the Term “Financial Repression”
To try to salvage its floundering central bank digital currency (CBDC), the eNaira, Nigeria’s Central Bank just launched an all-out assault on physical cash. More
Against Backdrop of War, Rolling Blackouts and Internet Outages, Ukraine is Trying to Digitize Everything
“The Government needs to become as flexible and mobile as an IT company, to automate all functions and services,… reduce 60% of officials, introduce large-scale privatization and outsourcing of government functions”: Ukraine’s Minister of Digital Transformation. More
Latin American Leaders Call for Pardon and Release of Julian Assange from his “Unjust Imprisonment”
“Many people in Europe are following with admiration what is now happening in [Latin America],” said Wikileaks’ editor-in-chief and close confidant of Assange. “When looking at the political landscape in Europe all we have are dark forces.”More
Brazil and Argentina Just Agreed to Use Local Currencies for Bilateral Energy Trade, In Yet Another Snub for US Dollar
When two of the largest countries on the American continent, Brazil and Argentina, agree to establish a bilateral payment system in local currencies, it is worth taking note.More
The Good News and Bad News About the World’s Most Systemic Lender, Credit Suisse
Credit Suisse may have taken an “important step” in its turnaround process, as its unfortunately named chairman, Alex Lehmann, said this week. But it is also suffering a gathering run on deposits and losing clients to its biggest rival. More
Something Just Cracked in Spain’s Mortgage Market
Spain already witnessed one of the most spectacular housing bubbles and busts so far this century. As pressures in the mortgage market begin to grow, the government and banks are desperately trying to avoid a rerun. More
“Inverse” Migration: Why Are So Many US Citizens Moving to Mexico?
As life gets prohibitively expensive for many people living in the US (and other rich countries), relatively cheaper countries like Mexico are becoming increasingly attractive. But for local people the costs are growing.More
The G20 Just Agreed to “Build on the Success” (sic) of Digital COVID-19 Certificates for Future Pandemics
Even as divisions rise in the world, the governments of the world’s largest economies appear to be on a strikingly similar page when it comes to rolling out digital health certificates, digital identity schemes and central bank digital currencies.More
China Is Making More Big Moves in Latin America
What happens when one of Latin America’s smaller economies, on the US doorstep, decides to throw its lot in with China? It looks like we are about to see. More
Nick Corbishley 