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home > the cfr think tank > experts > sebastian mallaby
Director of the Maurice R. Greenberg Center for Geoeconomic Studies and Paul A. Volcker Senior Fellow for International Economics
Deputy Director of Studies
Contact Info:
Phone: +1-202-518-3446
E-mail: smallaby@cfr.org
Location:
Washington, DC
Media downloads:
High-resolution photo (JPG, 487K)
One-page bio (PDF, 40K)
Columnist and former editorial board member at the Washington Post. Currently writing a book on hedge funds.
Expertise:Globalization, trade, foreign assistance, hedge funds.
Experience:Washington Post Columnist (1999- Present); Washington Post Editorial Board Member (1999-2007); Author of The World's Banker: A Story of Failed States, Financial Crises and the Wealth and Poverty of Nations (The Penguin Press: 2004); Washington Bureau Chief for The Economist (1997-1999); Tokyo Bureau Chief for The Economist (1993-1996); International Finance Correspondent for The Economist (1991-1992); Author of After Apartheid: The Future of South Africa (Times Books: 1992); Africa Correspondent for The Economist (1987-1991).
Languages:French (fluent)
Selected Publications:"Hands off Hedge Funds," Foreign Affairs (2007); "Saving the World Bank," Foreign Affairs (2005); "How NGOs Hurt the Poor," Foreign Policy (2004); The World's Banker: A Story of Failed States, Financial Crises and the Wealth and Poverty of Nations(2004).
Current Research Projects
Past Research Projects
May 7, 2008
| Speaker: | George Soros, Chairman, Soros Fund Management LLC; Author, The New Paradigm for Financial Markets: The Credit Crash of 2008 and What It Means |
|---|---|
| Presider: | Sebastian Mallaby, Deputy Director of Studies, Director of the Maurice R. Greenberg Center for Geoeconomic Studies, and Paul A. Volcker Senior Fellow for International Economics, Council on Foreign Relations |
Video
Watch George Soros, chairman of Soros Fund Management, discuss implications of the mortgage crisis for the international economic system.
See more in Economics
May 7, 2008
| Speaker: | George Soros, Chairman, Soros Fund Management LLC; Author, The New Paradigm for Financial Markets: The Credit Crash of 2008 and What It Means |
|---|---|
| Presider: | Sebastian Mallaby, Deputy Director of Studies, Director of the Maurice R. Greenberg Center for Geoeconomic Studies, and Paul A. Volcker Senior Fellow for International Economics, Council on Foreign Relations |
Audio
Listen to George Soros, chairman of Soros Fund Management, discuss implications of the mortgage crisis for the international economic system.
See more in Economics
May 5, 2008
| Author: | Sebastian Mallaby, Director of the Maurice R. Greenberg Center for Geoeconomic Studies and Paul A. Volcker Senior Fellow for International Economics |
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Op-Ed
Washington Post
Of all the strange features of this presidential race, the tarnishing of Barack Obama has got to be the most ridiculous. In this Washington Post op-ed, Sebastian Mallaby writes that the Obama-Wright "revelations" are really a revelation about our political culture: About its failure to distinguish the important from the trivial and about the inevitability that the race card will eventually be played against a black candidate.
See more in U.S. Election 2008
April 21, 2008
| Author: | Sebastian Mallaby, Director of the Maurice R. Greenberg Center for Geoeconomic Studies and Paul A. Volcker Senior Fellow for International Economics |
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Op-Ed
Washington Post
In this Washington Post op-ed, Sebastian Mallaby argues that while the people falling behind on their mortgages do not deserve government assistance, the threat of a negative spiral in homes prices warrants federal measures to reduce foreclosures. And despite the political candidates who routinely denonuce Washington, the proposals in the House and Senate are by and large sound.
See more in Economic Development, Congress, U.S. Election 2008
April 10, 2008
| Speaker: | Sebastian Mallaby, Director of the Maurice R. Greenberg Center for Geoeconomic Studies, Deputy Director of the David Rockefeller Studies Program, Paul A. Volcker Senior Fellow in International Economics, Council on Foreign Relations |
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| Presider: | Irina A. Faskianos, Vice President, National Program & Outreach, Council on Foreign Relations |
Audio
Listen to Sebastian Mallaby, director of the Maurice R. Greenberg Center for Geoeconomic Studies at CFR, discuss the state of the U.S. economy and its implications for the rest of the world with students as part of the CFR Academic Conference Call Series.
See more in Geoeconomics, International Finance, Trade
April 9, 2008
| Author: | Sebastian Mallaby, Director of the Maurice R. Greenberg Center for Geoeconomic Studies and Paul A. Volcker Senior Fellow for International Economics |
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Foreign Affairs Article — Summary
Sebastian Mallaby's update to his January/February 2007 essay "Hands Off Hedge Funds."
See more in United States, Business & Foreign Policy
April 7, 2008
| Author: | Sebastian Mallaby, Director of the Maurice R. Greenberg Center for Geoeconomic Studies and Paul A. Volcker Senior Fellow for International Economics |
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Op-Ed
Washington Post
In this Washington Post op-ed, Sebastian Mallaby explores the double-bubble theory of the current financial crisis—not only do we face the bursting of a real estate bubble, but we also face the bursting of a second bubble which is the product of a quarter-century expansion in borrowing, excessive confidence in the dollar and an overblown faith in markets. In order to deal with this double-bubble, Mallaby advocates two reforms: bringing complex, “over the counter” securities onto exchanges and requiring lenders to increase capital cushions during market upswings.
See more in United States, Economics
March 24, 2008
| Author: | Sebastian Mallaby, Director of the Maurice R. Greenberg Center for Geoeconomic Studies and Paul A. Volcker Senior Fellow for International Economics |
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Op-Ed
Washington Post
One year ago, with spectacular timing, a Wall Streeter named Richard Bookstaber published a book on financial engineering. He called it "A Demon of Our Own Design," and his argument was that a new breed of "quants" had created a system too complex to be manageable. In this Washington Post op-ed, Sebastian Mallaby agrees with Dr. Bookstaber that—in the wake of Bear Stearns—modern financial engineering has become harder to defend.
See more in United States, Corporate Governance
March 10, 2008
| Author: | Sebastian Mallaby, Director of the Maurice R. Greenberg Center for Geoeconomic Studies and Paul A. Volcker Senior Fellow for International Economics |
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Op-Ed
Washington Post
Watching the global economy right now is a bit like watching the lead-up to the Iraq war—the risk presented by a festering threat has to be weighed against the risk inherent in preemptive action. While it's impossible to know whether American activism or European immobility is correct because of the nature of the challenge, Sebastian Mallaby argues that the divergence in approaches on either side of the Atlantic is likely to stoke tensions.
See more in United States, Europe/Russia
March 7, 2008
Podcast
CFR’s Sebastian Mallaby cautions the next U.S. president that “green tariffs” could undermine the legitimacy of the World Trade Organization.
See more in Trade, Climate Change, International Organizations
March 2, 2008
| Author: | Sebastian Mallaby, Director of the Maurice R. Greenberg Center for Geoeconomic Studies and Paul A. Volcker Senior Fellow for International Economics |
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Op-Ed
Washington Post
In this Washington Post op-ed, Sebastian Mallaby argues that Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton have pushed trade populism beyond the point at which it can be easily forgiven. Presidential primaries always seem to drive Democrats to the left—and this year's primaries have been painfully prolonged, damaging the party's credibility.
See more in United States, Trade, International Organizations, U.S. Election 2008
February 25, 2008
| Author: | Sebastian Mallaby, Director of the Maurice R. Greenberg Center for Geoeconomic Studies and Paul A. Volcker Senior Fellow for International Economics |
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Op-Ed
Washington Post
In Thursday’s debate, Barack Obama declared that "what's lacking right now is not good ideas." In this Washington Post op-ed, Sebastian Mallaby argues that good ideas on big issues such as climate change are actually quite scarce.
See more in United States, Energy/Environment, U.S. Election 2008
February 11, 2008
| Author: | Sebastian Mallaby, Director of the Maurice R. Greenberg Center for Geoeconomic Studies and Paul A. Volcker Senior Fellow for International Economics |
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Op-Ed
Washington Post
In this malaise election, should candidates be focusing on economic concerns or foreign policy? Sebastian Mallaby discusses the role of both in the 2008 election.
See more in U.S. Election 2008
January 28, 2008
News Briefing
CFR experts offer their analysis of President George W. Bush's final State of the Union address.
See more in U.S. Strategy and Politics, Presidency
January 28, 2008
| Author: | Sebastian Mallaby, Director of the Maurice R. Greenberg Center for Geoeconomic Studies and Paul A. Volcker Senior Fellow for International Economics |
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Op-Ed
Washington Post
In his Washington Post column, Sebastian Mallaby writes that investment banks should reform their incentives so they are more like hedge funds.
See more in United States, Economic Development, Geoeconomics
January 22, 2008
Podcast
CFR’s Sebastian Mallaby says emergency rate cuts reveal a shifting focus at the U.S. Federal Reserve.
See more in United States, Economics, Geoeconomics
January 14, 2008
| Author: | Sebastian Mallaby, Director of the Maurice R. Greenberg Center for Geoeconomic Studies and Paul A. Volcker Senior Fellow for International Economics |
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Op-Ed
Washington Post
Last year's Nobel Prize in economics went to three founders of a field known as mechanism design theory - the rules by which people with varying preferences can reconcile their interests. When applied to the presidential primaries, mechanism design theory finds that “just like badly designed auctions, the primaries encourage ‘strategic’ behavior that conceals true preferences.” To this end, Sebastian Mallaby argues that the primaries are even more absurd than most critics recognize.
See more in U.S. Strategy and Politics, U.S. Election 2008
December 10, 2007
| Author: | Sebastian Mallaby, Director of the Maurice R. Greenberg Center for Geoeconomic Studies and Paul A. Volcker Senior Fellow for International Economics |
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Op-Ed
Washington Post
Sebastian Mallaby writes that "Hank Paulson ranks among the Bush administration's many disappointments."
See more in Economics
November 26, 2007
| Author: | Sebastian Mallaby, Director of the Maurice R. Greenberg Center for Geoeconomic Studies and Paul A. Volcker Senior Fellow for International Economics |
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Op-Ed
Washington Post
The good news on climate change is that the world wants to do something. The bad news is that none of these fine sentiments will matter unless a critical mass of countries unites around a real policy. Delegates from around the world will meet next month in Bali, supposedly to launch negotiations on a successor agreement to the Kyoto Protocol. In this Washington Post op-ed, Sebastian Mallaby argues that while people agree that action is essential, they disagree so fiercely on the details that action may prove impossible.
See more in Climate Change, International Organizations
November 12, 2007
| Author: | Sebastian Mallaby, Director of the Maurice R. Greenberg Center for Geoeconomic Studies and Paul A. Volcker Senior Fellow for International Economics |
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Op-Ed
Washington Post
Since the breaking of the gold link, the dollar has become the world's primary measure of value. But the dollar, like the gold standard before it, is under pressure. For the United States, a falling dollar means pricier imports but also an export boom that could carry the economy through its housing bust. Yet, for countries that use the euro, a weak dollar means a loss of competitiveness. And for dollar-pegging Asian exporters, a falling dollar worsens the export boom that is overheating their economies. So the world faces a dilemma. Sebastian Mallaby argues that a long-term goal of an alternative global currency may be in order.
See more in Geoeconomics, International Finance
Climate change poses threats to national security in a number of ways. In this report, sponsored by the Center for Geoeconomic Studies, Joshua W. Busby offers specific recommendations for confronting this important issue, including a list of "no-regrets" policies.
This report, by International Affairs Fellow Michelle D. Gavin and sponsored by the Center for Preventive Action, surveys the current situation in Zimbabwe and proposes steps that can increase the likelihood that regime change, when it comes, will bring constructive reform instead of conflict and state collapse.
Complete list of Council Special Reports.
For more information on the David Rockefeller Studies Program, contact:
Gary Samore
Vice President, Director of Studies, and Maurice R. Greenberg Chair
+1-212-434-9627
gsamore@cfr.org
Sebastian Mallaby
Director of the Maurice R. Greenberg Center for
Geoeconomic Studies, Deputy Director of Studies, and Paul A. Volcker Senior
Fellow for International Economics
smallaby@cfr.org
Janine Hill
Deputy Director of Studies Administration
+1-212-434-9753
jhill@cfr.org
The David Rockefeller Studies Program is the Council’s “think tank.” Its work is integral to achieving the Council’s goal of contributing to the foreign policy debate. Fellows in the Studies Program do this by researching, writing, and commenting on the most important challenges facing the United States and the world.
Copyright 2008 by the Council on Foreign Relations. All Rights Reserved.
