Send us Fan Mail Former Minister of Finance Manuel Hinds joins us for an eye-opening account of how El Salvador dollarized. We get down to the nitty-gritty of monetary policy and prudent governance in what should serve as a poignant lesson for the Caribbean region. Dollarization in Latin America is back in the economic headlights. The policy is simple. Encourage the use of US dollars as a unit of an account in a country other than the USA to aid the fiscal stabilization and long-term growth of t...
Feb 07, 2024•1 hr 9 min
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Feb 05, 2024•47 min
Send us Fan Mail Talent will make or break a band, a company, and even a country. We're joined by Dr Collin Constantine to explore the requirements for successful growth, primarily in the context of Guyana, the region's potential rising star economy. Does Georgetown possess the necessary talent to bolster its social and political institutions or will they languish beneath a wave of uneven wealth distribution, similar to the likes of West African oil states? Guyana's political history and economy...
Jan 25, 2024•35 min
Send us Fan Mail This episode takes us deeper into the idea of art as part of the welfare state. Music journalist and critic, Andrew Mellor is our guide to the historical nuances that fuel the Nordic's ongoing domination of the classical music space. Finland boasts the highest number of conductors per capita in the world. This has not happened by chance. The unique way of talent selection at the Sibelius Academy plays a large role in this. The country exports its prowess to almost every corner o...
Jan 25, 2024•40 min
Send us Fan Mail A return to Argentina. On this episode of the Rasheed Griffith Show, we focus again on the beleaguered South American economy and discuss Javier Milei's meteoric rise to claim victory in the recent elections. Our guest, Argentinian political analyst Bruno Binetti, explores the socio-economic conditions that paved the way for Milei's win and the harsh recovery journey ahead for what was once one of the continent's financial powerhouses. The name of the game is change. Binetti pos...
Dec 29, 2023•51 min
Send us Fan Mail From gold to Bitcoin. In this episode, we are joined by Professor Lawrence White to explore a comparative history of money, starting with the era of the gold standard. We trace the origins of bank notes, private money, and the underpinnings (and shortfalls) of monetary systems across Latin America and the Caribbean. Our discussion begins with dollarization rumblings across Latin America, namely Argentina. "In a way, dollarization is a bit like going back to the gold standard in ...
Dec 22, 2023•48 min
Send us Fan Mail "1 in 10 Icelanders write books." This curiously repeated statistic, (accuracy notwithstanding) stems from Iceland's proud literary heritage. The North Atlantic island nation is renowned for its contributions to the arts, gender norms, and governance. This episode's guest, Egill Bjarnason (a writer himself) gives us some insight into the origins of this cultural dynamism, the modern policies that foster its continuation, and the resulting influence beyond Iceland across the glob...
Dec 20, 2023•25 min
Send us Fan Mail Why is Venezuela on the verbal offensive and threatening to carve off more than two-thirds of Guyana's land area? The answer is wrapped in a tale almost 200 years in the making. Dr. Ivelaw Griffith takes us on an insightful journey from the nascent years of the Bolivarian Republic and its then-colonial neighbor, right up to today's war of words and saber rattling. Venezuela's initial claims to the Essequibo, the disputed territory, began as far back as 1841. During this period o...
Dec 18, 2023•35 min
Send us Fan Mail Picture this: a tropical island, white sand beaches, bustling outdoor markets, and a burgeoning tech hub. It's not the Bahamas or Barbados. Instead, this episode takes us 11,000 kilometers away from the Caribbean, to Zanzibar, an autonomous archipelago of Tanzania and home of our guest Daniel Yu. The CEO of Wasoko, Africa's fastest-growing company in 2022, sits with Rasheed to discuss the ongoing political and social conditions that are positioning Zanzibar as a prime destinatio...
Dec 15, 2023•36 min
Send us Fan Mail The British Empire was more than just colonialism and slavery. Framing it as such does a deep disservice to history, impedes progress in the present, and is an attempt to rewrite history in a manner that could endanger a stable future. Professor Nigel Biggar joins Rasheed for a thought-provoking discussion to give some ethical clarity to a tumultuous and complex period in the West's past. Slavery was not unique to the British Empire. They weren't the first, but they certainly ma...
Dec 13, 2023•41 min
Send us Fan Mail What does it actually mean to "restructure" debt? Federico Sequeda, a portfolio manager at Morgan Stanley, discusses the intricacies of default with our CEO Rasheed Griffith. No two restructurings are the same and we get to the bottom of the how and why behind the hard conversations Caribbean governments find themselves in to attempt fiscal correction. The region is no stranger to default. A dearth of foreign investment and a glaring lack of projects to invest in may be to blame...
Nov 18, 2023•1 hr 3 min
Send us Fan Mail Argentina is gearing up to make one of the most pivotal decisions in its economic recovery: dollarization. The country heads to the polls this weekend, and a win for presidential hopeful Javier Milei means a vote for the shift to an officially dollarized financial system. Emilio Ocampo is the man tasked by the potential new president to coordinate and execute the transition to the dollar . In this episode, he discusses the implications of this controversial move and the conditio...
Oct 20, 2023•36 min
Send us Fan Mail Is US Dollar dominance going away? No. Let's get that out of the way immediately. Rasheed Griffith and Daniel McDowell sit down for a much more serious and interesting conversation, grounded in the reality of economic and political history. The US dollar has been the reserve currency of the world since Bretton Woods in the 1940s. How did that come to be and what effects do sanctions have on the global standing of the greenback? "Demise of the dollar" predictions are nothing new,...
Oct 17, 2023•48 min
Send us Fan Mail The Caribbean's brand potential on the world stage is not being fully realized. Deodat Maharaj, Director of Caribbean Export, argues that several regional obstacles must be addressed before the Caribbean product can be unified and finally achieve true recognition globally. Firstly, there's financing for small and micro-businesses. They comprise more than 60% of the Caribbean's business economy. There's also the process of transitioning a business from an informal one, to a regis...
Oct 11, 2023•41 min•Ep. 13
Send us Fan Mail British imperialism might be why Singapore has such high living standards today. The British were able to transplant their social norms and institutions more easily onto colonies like Singapore and Hong Kong. This, at least, is part of what Bryan Cheang argues in this episode of Caribbean Progress with Rasheed Griffith. But what made Singapore more receptive than others to British values, even within the British Empire itself? Modern Singapore's status as a democracy is conteste...
Oct 06, 2023•26 min•Ep. 13
Send us Fan Mail Welcome back to Caribbean Progress with Rasheed Griffith, a podcast of CPSI . In this episode, I am joined by the insightful Joseph Wang, a former senior trader on the open market desk at the Federal Reserve Bank in New York. We discuss the expanding internationalization of the Fed and the steadfast dominance of the USD in global trade and finance across the dollar zone. Key Points 0:00 Internationalization of the Fed 9:40 Interest Rates in the Dollar Zone 14:13 Fed's Policy and...
Sep 25, 2023•44 min•Ep. 12
Send us Fan Mail From QQ Girls to CFIUS Reviews. In this episode Rasheed is joined by Martin Chorzempa, a Senior Fellow at the Peterson Institute, to discuss Martin's book The Cashless Revolution about China's reinvention of money and the future of America's dominant role in the global financial technology industry. Martin on X (formerly Twitter): @ChorzempaMartin Rasheed on X: @rasheedguo Visit our Substack at cpsi.media...
Sep 20, 2023•34 min•Ep. 11
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Sep 16, 2023•21 min•Ep. 10
Send us Fan Mail This week, we discuss the fascinating chronicles of monetary evolution with Dr. Dror Goldberg, an economics scholar from the Open University of Israel. From the captivating myth of Yap stone money and its striking similarities to Bitcoin. We dive deep into the economic journey of the Massachusetts colonies in the 17th century. The 17th century Massachusetts, a bustling trade center marked by Puritan settlers and their innovative financial ideas, sets the stage for our discussion...
Sep 08, 2023•39 min•Ep. 9
Send us Fan Mail Let's unravel the complexities of Charter Cities with Mark Lutter, a pioneer who is shaping urban landscapes as the CEO of Braavos Cities, and founder and chairman of the Charter Cities Institute. Is it possible to revolutionize economic growth through innovative governance? This episode, Rasheed and Mark unravel the intricacies and debates surrounding Charter Cities, offering a compelling conversation that challenges conventional wisdom around city planning and economic growth....
Aug 22, 2023•39 min•Ep. 8
Send us Fan Mail Can you imagine the catastrophic consequences of your country being blacklisted internationally? Join Rasheed as he chats with Marla Dukharan , a top Caribbean economic advisor, as we unpack the intricacies of this reality many Caribbean nations face. They dare to question the motives and fairness of international entities like the Financial Action Task Force and the OECD and how their blacklisting practices have devastatingly derailed these countries' reputation and development...
Aug 12, 2023•22 min•Ep. 7
Send us Fan Mail In this episode of Caribbean Progress, Rasheed speaks with Humberto Macias, who previously served as the Deputy General Counsel of Honduras PrósperaThe promoter behind Próspera ZEDE. Being one of the first team members to relocate to Honduras for this tremendous project, Rasheed and Humberto discuss the growth of Próspera thus far and Honduras’ varying demographics. They dive into the details of the recent repeal of the ZEDE laws by the Castro administration and the effects this...
Aug 06, 2023•33 min•Ep. 6
Send us Fan Mail In this experimental episode of Caribbean Progress with Rasheed Griffith, Rasheed reviews three Caribbean songs with two long-time friends, Kenidi Prescod and Akil Walton. These songs fall under the genre of social commentary calypso, referencing political decisions throughout the Caribbean. This episode was fun, and we hope you enjoy it. Note: Bajan means Barbadian. The lyrics of the songs discussed in the episode are in the transcription section. Resources Gypsy - Sinking Ship...
Jul 25, 2023•59 min•Ep. 5
Send us Fan Mail In this episode of Caribbean Progress, Rasheed interviews Anton Howes, a historian of innovation. This conversation had no bounds as they speculated what the world could have been if we had utilized water for power in the industrial revolution instead of coal. What if the Caribbean countries remained under British rule? They examined the abolitionist movement in light of the oft-quoted Williams thesis and how economists can better theorize the modern world. The overriding theme ...
Jul 15, 2023•54 min•Ep. 4
Send us Fan Mail In this episode of Caribbean Progress, Rasheed chats with Tianyu Fang, a Fellow of CPSI and a well-known tech journalist. This was a far-reaching conversation, from philosophizing on the ideological limits of selling citizenship to the practicality of fiscal policy constraints from reductions in passport demand. They explained why some Caribbean countries have become overly reliant on their Citizenship-by-Investment (CBI) sectors. They also get into the weeds about why so many C...
Jul 10, 2023•45 min•Ep. 3
Send us Fan Mail In this episode of Caribbean Progress, Rasheed speaks with Dr. DeLisle Worrell, a renowned economist and former Governor of the Central Bank of Barbados. They discuss many policy topics, including why the standard macroeconomic models of the foreign exchange constraint in open economies should be revised. How dollarization brings fiscal credibility to consolidation policies. They also explore the economic dislocation that occurred in the Caribbean post-independence. Resources De...
Jul 03, 2023•54 min•Ep. 2
Send us Fan Mail In our first episode, Rasheed invited Craig Palsson to discuss the current state of Haiti. They delve into its past, from pre-independence rivalry to the turbulent period of US occupation, up to the most recent presidential assassination. Next, they analyze Haiti's lack of institutional credibility as a significant factor in perpetuating its decline. Compared to other countries in the region, Haiti's persistent failure leaves us wondering what’s next. Can anything be done? Resou...
Jun 26, 2023•1 hr 12 min•Ep. 1
