A remarkably deft work of storytelling that reveals how the blueprint for the postwar economic order was actually drawn.

A fascinating intellectual history of monetary nationalism from the ancient world to the present exploring why, in its modern incarnation, it represents the single greatest threat to globalization.

Over the past two decades, another form of economic exchange besides imports and exports has risen to a level of vastly greater significance and political concern: the purchase and sale of financial assets across borders.

Benn Steil and Dinah Walker explain why the Fed's massive holdings of mortgage-backed securities (MBS) are distorting its thinking about the conduct of monetary policy going forward. They propose a novel plan to rectify this, in which the Fed swaps its MBS with the Treasury in return for Treasury securities, which the Fed can sell as part of a normal "exit" from monetary stimulus.

The debt crisis that has hammered southern Europe since 2010 will have long-lived economic effects, despite the moderation in Spanish and Italian government borrowing costs since the European Central Bank's "Outright Monetary Transactions" initiative last September.

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Benn Steil offers a neat and innovative way for the Federal Reserve to reverse its monetary stimulus efforts as the economy recovers, without the worrisome economic and political consequences of having to sell off its massive stock of mortgage-backed securities.

Benn Steil's Wall Street Journal op-ed explains the unique historical circumstances in which the Bretton Woods international monetary system emerged in 1944, and why calls for "a new Bretton Woods" today will go unsatisfied.

Benn Steil's Wall Street Journal Europe op-ed, co-authored with Dinah Walker, argues that the Bank of England is getting "Libored"—that is, misled and manipulated—by the banks benefiting from its Funding for Lending Scheme. The Fed, which has shown interest in the scheme, should beware.

Benn Steil's column in Dow Jones' Financial News, co-authored with Dinah Walker, shows why last March's Greek debt restructuring left Greece in poor shape to avoid financial collapse

CFR Director of International Economics Benn Steil argues that the "Volcker rule" ban on bank proprietary trading won't prevent financial crises, and that the troubled effort to implement it should be abandoned in favor of controls on bank leverage.

Benn Steil's Financial Times op-ed shows that whereas the impact of the "Buffett Rule" on Warren Buffett's tax liability is trivial, the political capital he has accrued appears to be leveraging his investments.

Benn Steil's Financial News column analyzes the disproportionate impact the housing bust has had on young adults, explaining why this is likely to act as a long-term drag on the economy.

Benn Steil's Forbes op-ed takes a critical look at the economics behind the Obama Administration's free-contraception insurance mandate.

Benn Steil's Wall Street Journal op-ed argues that the Fed's recent 3-year low interest rate pledge, combined with an inflation target below current inflation levels, is misguided, given its persistently poor track record with economic forecasting.

Benn Steil's Forbes op-ed explains why central banks, in spite of their money-printing powers, ultimately need real capital.

Benn Steil's Financial News column explains why the ECB is incapable of taking Fed-size risks to its balance sheet as long as Germany is willing to contemplate its ultimate liquidation.

Benn Steil's column in the October 10th edition of Dow Jones' Financial News takes a critical look at popular European calls for a new "Marshall Plan."

Benn Steil and Paul Swartz look at the dangers of the European Central Bank's ever-deeper forays into fiscal policy and credit allocation.

Benn Steil and Paul Swartz's op-ed in the August 19 edition of the Wall Street Journal explains why the Fed must give up control over the setting of the Fed funds rate--or indeed any interest rate--in order to implement its announced exit strategy. But they argue that evidence from the eurozone suggests strongly that the Fed will be unwilling to relinquish control over rates.

Benn Steil argues that the U.S. is relying dangerously on massive government spending and lending to paper over its real problem--distorted incentives in the debt-encumbered banking system.

CFR's Benn Steil analyzes the financial rescue plan under debate on Capitol Hill and suggests adjustments that he says would make it more effective and less risky for the federal government.

In this Wall Street Journal op-ed, Benn Steil argues that the U.S Federal Reserve has seriously damaged the credibility of the policy framework its chairman has long championed, inflation targeting, by pursuing other objectives inconsistent with price stability.

In this Financial Times op-ed, Benn Steil argues that the Fed's aggressive monetary expansion threatens to undermine its unique powers among central banks, and, if continued, will have damaging consequences for America's future prosperity and global political influence.