Showing 1 - 6 of 6
Is there a case for universal basic income?
News, Leonid Bershidsky, Published on 11/02/2019
» The first results of Finland's two-year experiment with a universal basic income are in, and if they're confirmed by further research, they will probably hurt the unconditional income cause. The trial run showed that "money for nothing" makes people happier but doesn't inspire them to find work any more than traditional unemployment benefits would.
Fighting tax dodgers can kill growth
News, Leonid Bershidsky, Published on 26/07/2018
» It's easy to be outraged about multinational corporations' shifting of profits to tax havens, but much harder to figure out how to stop them from doing it without hurting the economy. Evidence exists that curbing tax avoidance opportunities makes these firms move actual jobs, not just accounting profits, overseas.
Merkel joins US on trade 'low road'
News, Leonid Bershidsky, Published on 15/06/2018
» After failing to persuade President Donald Trump that punitive tariffs on European imports aren't a good idea, Chancellor Angela Merkel has apparently decided to fight back by taking a page from his playbook and manipulating facts.
Digital currencies can hurt the US
News, Leonid Bershidsky, Published on 06/12/2017
» Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro's announcement that the Latin American country will issue a cryptocurrency called the petro to overcome a "financial blockade" by the US probably mirrors the thinking of other maverick regimes. The possibility of sanctions-busting, and generally finding a way to work outside the Western-dominated global financial system, makes cryptocurrencies attractive to non-Western nations, and the more so to rogue regimes.
Authoritarian cryptocurrencies are on the march
News, Leonid Bershidsky, Published on 18/10/2017
» With Russia and China both embracing the idea of sovereign cryptocurrencies, it's time to ask a simple question: Why is a technology threatening to decentralise money so attractive to highly centralised, authoritarian regimes?
Turnover tax on global technology giants is sheer folly
News, Leonid Bershidsky, Published on 20/09/2017
» Ten European Union countries' finance ministers have signed a letter calling for a tax on the revenues of multinational tech companies that have been hiding away their European profits. But European leaders should proceed with caution, because a turnover levy may not be the best solution to this multi-billion-dollar problem.