Governing Global Finance (PDF)

Anthony Elson is an international economist, consultant and university lecturer in the Washington, DC, area of the United States. For many years, he was a senior staff member of the IMF and consultant with the World Bank. Currently he serves as Professorial Lecturer at the School for Advanced International Studies at Johns Hopkins University, USA, and Visiting Lecturer at the Duke Center for International Development, Duke University, USA.

"In the aftermath of the global financial crisis, reform of the international financial architecture is a high priority. Anthony Elson provides a detailed evaluation of global financial institutions from both contemporary and historical perspectives and lays out a compelling vision of how these institutions need to be reformed to promote global financial stability." - Eswar Prasad, Tolani Senior Professor of Trade Policy, Dyson School, Cornell University and Senior Fellow, Brookings Institution

"This remarkably accessible book provides a clear, intellectually vigorous, and multidisciplinarysynthesis of global financial history, and identifies the key principles on which to rebuild a sustainable international financial system." - Francis Lethem, Director, Duke Center for International Development

"There are many challenges in shaping a collective governance framework for the global financial system centered in the policy-making authority of nation states. Anthony Elson provides a wonderfully accessible treatment of the complex issues involved and skillfully maps the contours of a debate on the way forward. This is highly-recommended reading for researchers, policymakers, and practitioners in global governance." - Domenico Lombardi, President, The Oxford Institute for Economic Policy

"Anthony Elson takes us through the evolution of the 'global financial order' in the post-war period, underscores its strengths and weaknesses, and offers a framework for reform in the future. He injects a healthy dose of practical insight that only an IMF-veteran like himself could do. An excellent read for both experts and neophytes." - Michael G. Plummer, Head, Development Division, OECD

"Elson offers a clear historical exposition of the evolution of the modern international financial system and its regulatory architecture. While underlining the importance of global financial markets, he highlights the strengths and weaknesses of their governance