The credit crisis has placed the global financial system under almost unprecedented strain.
Tackling the many problems and charting a course through them to a new world order is a daunting challenge. It will require impressive political leadership and vision as well as concerted international cooperation.
Networks and institutions will matter as much as individuals.
In this graphic we explore the experiences and systems that connect the 50 people likely to be most influential in shaping the world debate.
The Group of Thirty for example, a nonprofit group founded in 1978 that comprises leading financiers, academics and officials and aims to “deepen understanding of international economic and financial issues”, is one interesting connection between these players.
Use the control panel to divide the leaders by age, nationality and network. Mouse over the photos for profiles.
You can read the rest of the series, including Lionel Barber’s overview of the fifty to watch, on our Future of Capitalism page.
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/7f6f08da-...
Fifty who will frame a way forward
By Financial Times reporters
OVERVIEW: FRONT LINE AGAINST AN EXISTENTIAL THREAT
The world financial crisis will go down in history as the first stress test of globalisation, writes Lionel Barber, FT editor.
In 2001 the September 11 terrorist attacks highlighted the threat of non-state actors waging asymmetric warfare against the most powerful nation on earth, but the economic consequences proved manageable. By contrast, the international credit squeeze marks an existential challenge to the free movement of goods, people and capital, the post-1989 model for global prosperity.
Tackling the crisis and planning for the post-crisis order requires political leadership. Even more important, it demands international co-operation. In this respect, networks matter as much as individuals. What are the patterns of co-operation that have so far emerged; who are the most influential movers and shakers; and how can they restore the confidence necessary to turn the tide?
The FT’s guide to people who will shape debate on the future of capitalism is by no means exhaustive. President Barack Obama stands at the top not merely because his country is at the centre of the storm but also because US leadership remains the necessary, though insufficient, antidote to the crisis.
The new global pecking order requires the inclusion of Chinese figures including Wen Jiabao, prime minister, and Wang Qishan, the recently appointed vice-premier and former mayor of Beijing. From Europe, Gordon Brown, Nicolas Sarkozy and Angela Merkel all figure – but the trio has yet to meld into a collective voice.
Despite criticism of their pre-crisis record, regulators feature prominently. Lord Turner, the forceful head of the Financial Services Authority, has already made his mark in London. So has Mario Draghi, the quietly assertive governor of the Bank of Italy, who chairs the Financial Stability Forum of central bankers and treasury civil servants.
Ben Bernanke, Federal Reserve chairman, is a must, along with Robert Zoellick of the World Bank and Dominique Strauss-Kahn at the International Monetary Fund. But are national governments ready to give the IMF and World Bank the extra money and authority to play a central role?
Much-abused bankers make the cut, but fewer than might have appeared on a similar list five years ago. Jamie Dimon of JPMorgan Chase is King of the Street, for now; but do not count out the resourceful Lloyd Blankfein of Goldman Sachs or Michel Pébereau, cerebral head of BNP Paribas.
Sheikh Hamad bin Jassem, Qatari prime minister and head of the QIA sovereign wealth fund, reflects the new reality: those with the capital call the shots. But no one can ignore the power of the web. Hence the inclusion of Eric Schmidt of Google and the insurgent Arianna Huffington of The Huffington Post. Let the debate begin.
POLITICIANS
1: Barack Obama, 47
US president
On his economic rescue plans so far, reviews are mixed but much detail is still awaited. In the meantime, the president is pressing ahead with a radical domestic reform agenda encompassing healthcare, the environment and education. As promised, it has a strong whiff both of audacity and of hope.
2: Wen Jiabao, 66
Chinese prime minister
The man in charge of China’s economy has a strong reputation overseas but is under fire at home from critics who say he put the brakes on too fast last year. A former geologist who rose through loyalty and attention to detail, he has demonstrated a populist touch – many know him as “Grandpa Wen”.
3: Angela Merkel, 54
Chancellor of Germany
Among advocates of a regulatory and systemic rather than purely macroeconomic or reactive response, she has called for a “new global constitution” for financial markets. The Christian Democrat will run for a second term on September 27.
4: Nicolas Sarkozy, 54
President of France
Regards himself as de facto leader of Europe given Gordon Brown’s domestic political and economic woes and Angela Merkel’s cumbersome coalition. During France’s European Union presidency he forged a semblance of co-ordination and unity, which has since dissipated. He champions state intervention over Anglo-Saxon capitalism.
5: Gordon Brown, 58
UK prime minister
Hailed as a potential global saviour by economist Paul Krugman after recapitalising Britain’s banks, the Labour former chancellor of the exchequer believes he is ideally equipped to tackle the crisis. Mr Brown hosts the Group of 20 summit of industrial and developing nations in London on April 2.
6: Vladimir Putin, 56
Prime minister of Russia
After enjoying a booming economy as president, he has seen the world change since he stepped down to the premiership last year. He will have to hold together a government budget that is suffering from an oil price slide.
7: Tim Geithner, 47
US Treasury secretary
Chairman of the New York Federal Reserve when the meltdown hit last September, he now spearheads the rescue of America’s financial system. His February announcement of rescue guidelines was perceived as miscued.
8: Lawrence Summers, 54
Director, National Economic Council
As Bill Clinton’s last Treasury secretary and Barack Obama’s top economic adviser, Larry Summers is arguably the most influential person in the administration. The former president of Harvard is less abrasive than before. But that is still a work in progress.
9: Hamad bin Jassem al-Thani, 50
Prime minister of Qatar; head of Qatar Investment Authority
Savvy, outspoken and a power broker in a gas-rich country that intends to spend its way out of the crisis and will probably succeed. The QIA, a sovereign wealth fund, will be bargain hunting as prices go down. Sheikh Hamad made waves by backing the creation of al-Jazeera, the popular Arabic channel.
10: Wang Qishan, 60
Vice-premier, China
Appointed last year, he has emerged as point man in the leadership on international financial issues. With a curriculum vitae that includes stints as mayor of Beijing and head of China Construction Bank, he is one of the few Chinese leaders at home in the diplomacy of the G20 summit. Famed for a blunt style.
11: Barney Frank, 68
Chairman, House of Representatives financial services committee
The congressman who will be one of the main architects helping to redesign US financial regulation wants to create a “systemic risk regulator”, saying the Fed should take on that task. Mr Frank is also pushing to overhaul mortgage financing and prevent lender abuses.
12: Steven Chu, 61
US energy secretary
With only one advanced degree to his name, he jokes he was the “academic black sheep” in his family of Chinese-American scholars. Yet Mr Chu had enough brainpower to win the Nobel Prize for physics in 1997. He will head efforts to promote green energy.
13: Olivier Besancenot, 34
French party leader
The Trotskyist postman who heads the New Anticapitalist party, France’s biggest extreme-left group, dreams of using unrest triggered by the recession to overturn the social and political order. Rated in polls as France’s most effective opposition politician, he has fought two presidential elections, winning well over 1m votes in each.
CENTRAL BANKERS
14: Ben Bernanke, 55
Chairman, US Federal Reserve
A scholar of the Great Depression and the measures that central banks can use at times of great crisis, he has had ample opportunity to put his theories into effect, using an expanding range of tools to try to arrest the slide.
15: Jean-Claude Trichet, 66
President, European Central Bank
The French bureaucrat, who has been tackling economic crises for more than two decades, believes politicians and central bankers must do their utmost to shore up economic confidence. He has helped rally governments behind rescue plans and regulatory reform.
16: Zhou Xiaochuan, 61
Governor, People’s Bank of China
China’s central bank governor since 2002 is considered a principal supporter of faster market reforms. Fluent in English, he can hold his own among economists. He is in charge of nearly $2,000bn in foreign exchange reserves.
17: Mervyn King, 60
Governor, Bank of England
Mr King’s policymaking at the UK central bank has come under fire for emphasising economics over financial stability. But beyond doubt are his intellectual prowess and grasp of global economic links.
18: Masaaki Shirakawa, 59
Governor, Bank of Japan
Although monetary steward of the world’s second largest economy, his cautious style and modest policy ambitions make clear he will not be a force for dramatic change. A BoJ veteran who calls central banking his hobby as well as his profession.
19: Mario Draghi, 61
Chairman, Financial Stability Forum and governor, Bank of Italy
US-educated economist, former Goldman Sachs executive and respected transatlanticist. He is a proponent of greater regulation, oversight and transparency at the FSF, an offshoot of the Group of Seven industrial countries that is expected to take on a greater role after the G20 summit.
20: Mark Carney, 43
Governor, Bank of Canada
The youthful Mr Carney continues the tradition of impressive Canadian governors. With a doctorate in economics, 13 years at Goldman and six as an official attending international meetings, he is well placed to understand the pressures of both banking and regulating.
21: Miguel Ordóñez, 63
Governor, Bank of Spain
As top Spanish central banker, Miguel Angel Fernández Ordóñez maintained a “contra-cyclical” provisioning system for banks, now seen as a model for the world. The Bank of Spain also rejected the off-balance-sheet units that helped to wreck banks’ profits elsewhere.
22: William Dudley, 56
President, Federal Reserve Bank of New York
After a career that combined central banking with practical experience, Mr Dudley was named in January to head the arm of the US central banking system that is closest to the markets. Trained as an economist, he began his career at the Fed but spent most of his professional life at Goldman Sachs.
23: Jacques de Larosière, 79
Honorary governor, Banque de France
Managing director of the IMF from 1978 to 1987, when he oversaw policy on the Latin American debt crisis and the Plaza accord on the dollar. He was then governor of the Banque de France and president of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development. A Commission group he chaired called last month for powerful EU regulators in banking, securities and insurance.
REGULATORS
24: Adair Turner, 53
Chairman, Financial Services Authority
Lord Turner of Ecchinswell started at the UK regulator the week after the collapse of Lehman Brothers. But in his first speech in January, the former McKinsey consultant offered one of the most comprehensive assessments of the origins of the crisis. This approach is familiar from his work in tackling problems from pensions to climate change. This month he is to present a report that will form the basis for reforms of UK financial regulation.
25: Sheila Bair, 54
Chairman, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation
Oversees an agency that has seen its powers vastly expanded under plans to stand behind the banking system. As the list of “problem” banks grows further failures will put pressure on the FDIC’s deposit insurance fund.
26: Mary Schapiro, 53
Chairman, Securities and Exchange Commission
Having worked in regulation for more than 20 years, she has both a consummate résumé and a tough skin. But the SEC is under fire over the crisis and Bernard Madoff’s alleged $50bn fraud. She has vowed to help restore investor confidence and toughen enforcement.
HEADS OF INSTITUTIONS
27: Jaime Caruana, 56
General manager, Bank for International Settlements
Spain’s former central bank governor takes over the hot seat at the central bankers’ bank next month. Having chaired the Basel II negotiations on bank capital, he is charged with helping find an alternative less prone to amplifying the economic cycle.
28: Dominique Strauss-Kahn, 59
Managing director, International Monetary Fund
A wily politician as well as a PhD economist. Like his counterpart at the World Bank, he has concentrated on trying to scale the institution up in size to address the crisis. He has also tried to finesse controversy over China’s currency policy by keeping the issue out of the bank’s executive board.
29: Robert Zoellick, 55
President, World Bank
After a career in public service with the odd stint in the private sector, he has sought to expand the bank’s capacity to lend in the face of the crisis.
30: Pascal Lamy, 61
Director-general, World Trade Organisation
Long-distance running has prepared Mr Lamy well for presiding over the marathon Doha round of trade talks. But the former EU commissioner has little executive power: he can consult, cajole and exhort rather than impose a deal.
INVESTORS
31: Lou Jiwei, 58
Chairman, China Investment Corp
The head of China’s fledgling sovereign wealth fund is regarded as a crucial member of the “market economy clique” of officials that includes Zhou Xiaochuan, central bank governor. CIC’s disastrous investments in Blackstone and Morgan Stanley have made him the target of criticism.
32: George Soros, 78
Founder of Soros Fund Management and Open Society Foundation
For the hedge fund manager and philanthropist, 2008 was a banner year – his fund defied a sinking market to post a return of nearly 10 per cent. The first Wall Street heavyweight to support Barack Obama, he has long predicted a crisis of global capitalism and finds himself in tune with the zeitgeist.
33: Warren Buffett, 78
Chairman, Berkshire Hathaway
The world’s most famous investor; still probably its richest man. A proponent of value investing, he believes in selling when others are greedy and buying when they are fearful. But after a call to buy stocks in late 2008, it turned out the sell-off had further to go.
34: Laurence Fink, 56
Chief executive, BlackRock
BlackRock has probably done more to clean up the mess than any other firm – for example, advising the Fed as it unwinds AIG’s credit default swaps. A mortgage-backed securities pioneer, Larry Fink is seen as one of few Wall Street leaders not to be discredited.
ECONOMISTS
35: Robert Shiller, 62
Professor of economics, Yale University
At the forefront of behavioural economics – a field that challenges the assumption that people, and particularly financial markets, are generally driven by rational behaviour. He wants ordinary people to have more rather than less exposure to derivatives, but as insurance against the nasty things in life.
36: Montek Singh Ahluwalia, 65
Deputy chairman, Indian Planning Commission
Described by some as the finest finance minister India never had, Mr Ahluwalia is associated with the reforms that helped make the country a promising emerging market. Over the past months, he has crafted India’s gradual stimulus response to the crisis.
37: Paul Volcker, 81
Chairman, Economic Recovery Advisory Board
Fed chairman in 1979-87, he is remembered mostly for monetary medicine to bring inflation under control, A Democrat, he warned early and powerfully about subprime mortgages.
38: Paul Krugman, 56
Professor, Princeton University; columnist, The New York Times
Almost certainly the world’s most famous economist, he parlayed a stellar academic background into a career as columnist, blogger and eviscerator of ideologically bound conservatism. He has carved out a niche as the Democrats’ liberal conscience.
39: Nouriel Roubini, 49
Chairman, RGE Monitor
Known as Dr Doom for being persistently the most gloomy, and most accurate, predictor of the financial crisis and its link to the wider economy, Prof Roubini is now predicting a “near-Depression” unless radical action is taken. An adviser to Tim Geithner in the Treasury of the 1990s.
40: Leszek Balcerowicz, 62
Professor of economics, Warsaw School of Economics
Architect of Poland’s economic transition, twice deputy prime minister and finance minister, then central bank governor. A believer in free markets, he is better known for the exposition of his ideas than building consensus.
BANKERS
41: Lloyd Blankfein, 54
Chief executive, Goldman Sachs
Steered his investment bank away from much of the 2008 destruction visited on Wall Street: Goldman was profitable for the year. In the harsh new environment, his task will be to find new growth areas without straying far from the firm’s traditional roots.
42: Jamie Dimon, 52
Chairman, JPMorgan Chase
From Citigroup reject to acclaimed “King of Wall Street”, Mr Dimon, who turns 53 on Friday, has been through the Street’s ups and downs but so far the crisis has been kind. JPMorgan was able to buy rivals Bear Stearns and Washington Mutual on the cheap.
43: Stephen Green, 60
Chairman, HSBC
At HSBC since 1982, he has voiced strong views about the need for reform of banking. A lay preacher and author of a book about reconciling religion with free markets, he has criticised the industry’s excesses during the boom.
44: Michel Pébereau, 67
Chairman, BNP Paribas
The long-serving chairman of France’s largest lender has worked behind the scenes as an adviser to Christine Lagarde, finance minister. Heading BNP since shortly before it was privatised in 1993 gives him an insight into the role the state should play.
INDUSTRIALISTS
45: Carlos Ghosn, 55
Chief executive, Nissan and Renault
Long seen as an exemplar of cross-border co-operation in the car business and now a chief spokesman, holding the presidency of the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association.
46: Indra Nooyi, 53
Chief executive, PepsiCo
An advocate of globalisation who argues that it needs to be underpinned by cultural and political sensitivity and ethical values. She warned at Davos this year that “capitalism leads to greed” and needs effective regulation.
47: Eric Schmidt, 53
Chief executive, Google
The veteran computer scientist is a key link in the Obama administration’s ties with Silicon Valley. His technocratic style mirrors the technological bent of the administration. He acted as an adviser to the Obama transition team.
MEDIA/ACADEMIA
48: Arianna Huffington, 58
Editor-in-chief, The Huffington Post
The former biographer has recreated the art of the Washington salon hostess for the digital age. HuffingtonPost.com, unlike many competitors, has managed to hold its audience since the election.
49: Rush Limbaugh, 58
Host, the Rush Limbaugh Show
“You can’t just listen to Rush Limbaugh and get things done,” Barack Obama told Republicans during negotiations on the stimulus. More than 20m radio listeners appear to disagree, as they lap up the talk show host’s rhetoric against liberalism.
50: Kishore Mahbubani, 60
Dean, Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy
Though no outright proponent of superior “Asian values”, he says the west needs to cede ground in institutions such as the World Bank and IMF for Asia to play a more constructive role.