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So far Bob has created 267 blog entries.

Leaving the EU meant dodging not just one bullet – but an annual volley

Published by Brexitwatch on 23rd June 2023

Published on 26th June 2023

We are well off out of the EU’s dysfunctional system, but much remains to be done to extinguish its vestiges in the UK.

You can download the pdf version of this article here.

Thanks to Brexit the UK has managed to dodge a bullet: the risk of […]

‘Plain Sailing for the ECB? Look out for the rocks!’

Published on 25th June 2023

I am delighted to feature here the recent paper by Barney Reynolds, ‘Plain Sailing for the ECB? Look out for the rocks!’, Politeia, 2023 – https://www.politeia.co.uk/plain-sailing-for-the-ecb/

You can download it here.

Barney was co-author with myself and Professor David Blake of Managing Euro Risk: Saving Investors from Systemic Risk (Politeia, 2020, ISBN 978-1-9163575-1-8).

His […]

Central banks should be wobbling in their drive towards Central Bank Digital Currencies

Published on 8th June 2023.

The underlying article was published by IREF Europe on 7th June 2023.

Introduction

Central banks have undertaken many investigations, pilots and proofs-of-concept into Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDCs), proving little beyond the lack of a convincing case in their favour, but unearthing many risks, drawbacks and unanswered questions.

Recent material from Sweden, Japan, the […]

Totality of on- and off-balance sheet liabilities of the EU public sector is cloaked in obscurity

Total EU public sector debt is shrouded in mystery

Published on 29th May 2023

The totality of the public sector liabilities of EU and Eurozone member states is clouded in obscurity.  The key measure tracked by Eurostat – ‘General government gross debt’ – is circumvented to such an extent that, based on year-end 2021 figures, debts of […]

The archipelago of EU public sector entities with borrowing powers has created a behemoth of liabilities

EU public sector entities harbour a debt mountain

Published on 26th May 2023

The EU member states contain numerous public sector entities with borrowing powers, and whose debts fall outside the definition of member state debt as reported by Eurostat. The responsibility for the debts tracks back, one way or another, to the member state but the […]

Sir John Redwood comments for The Bruges Group

Published on 24th May 2023

Sir John Redwood in conversation about the issues of EU and Eurozone debts as raised in my book ‘The shadow liabilities of EU Member States, and the threat they pose to global financial stability’.


Sir John Redwood on the debts of EU and Eurozone

The EU banking system has massively exaggerated the amount of its cushion against losses

EU banking system has a tiny loss cushion

Published on 24th May 2023

EU authorities have permitted commercial banks to implement a particularly aggressive form of risk-evaluation methodology, the result of which is the ability to claim a thick loss-absorption cushion and to attest that the EU banking system is stable and resilient. It isn’t: cushions are […]

The Eurosystem has become a commercial bank, except one without a credit assessment department or loss-absorption cushion

The Eurosystem is a commercial bank with no capital

Published on 22nd May 2023

The Eurosystem has expanded its operations well beyond what a central bank would have traditionally undertaken. It now owns assets that are not ‘central bank money’ definitionally. Assets have credit ratings as low as BB in the Standard and Poor’s system, which means […]

Will EU/UK MoU on financial services regulation address EU’s systemic breach of regulation?

Bruges Group blog on EU breaches of regulation

Published on 18th May 2023

You will have seen that the EU and UK just announced a Memorandum of Understanding on regulatory matters to do with financial services:https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/mex_23_2805The issues in my book – ‘The shadow liabilities of EU Member States, and the threat they pose to global financial stability’ […]

Analysis of YouGov surveys commissioned by the Bank of England in connection with its ‘digital pound’ project.

Bank of England’s ‘consultation’ on the ‘digital pound’

Published on 15th May 2023

We previously issued a paper on the YouGov surveys that the Bank of England commissioned to support its work on the ‘digital pound’, the outcome of which work is out for consultation.

We have responded to both the Consultation Paper and the accompanying Technology Working […]