China, Russia and the International Monetary Fund are among those contemplating a Venezuela bailout. But help for this debt-stricken nation seems far from assured.
South Africa needs to decide if it will continue to waste public money on its national carrier, or incur the costs of letting SAA go bankrupt.
Shutterstock
South Africa’s Public Protector, Busisiwe Mkhwebane has touched on two highly contentious issues: the unresolved bailout for a local bank three decades ago. And the role of the country’s Reserve Bank.
Oz Shy, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)
Regulators trying to keep taxpayers from having to foot the bill for the next wave of bank bailouts are placing too much on emphasis on size and missing the ‘bigger’ picture.
She certainly thinks so.
Puerto Rico parade via www.shutterstock.com
Congress just passed a bailout for Puerto Rico – in the nick of time – yet it’s not enough to solve the island’s biggest challenge: returning to growth.
Pedro Caban, University at Albany, State University of New York
Puerto Rico’s economic woes have led some analysts to compare it to Greece. Paradoxically, Puerto Rico’s colonial status explains both its growth and the impending financial debacle.
Is it worth trying to put a price on the natural world, when things like water and food are priceless? Yes, says Paul Sutton - without knowing the value of the environment, we might not value it at all.
Alexis Tsipras is on track to win the Greek election.
thierry ehrmann
The calling of a snap election in Greece for January 25 has been met with great concern in political circles, prompted direct interventions by top European officials and alarmed markets and credit rating…
Pensioners protest in Nicosia.
Katia Christodoulou/EPA
The nightmare for Cyprus started in March 2013. The country’s banking sector faced a sudden squeeze. The two biggest players – Bank of Cyprus and Marfin Laiki Bank – were in danger of a collapse which…
Dance with the devil and the devil don’t change: he changes you.
HowardLake
The Co-operative Bank is no longer. What was once an experiment in working class self-help has become the latest victim of rapid changes sweeping the financial sector. It seems unlikely that the ethical…
Taking on water is the last thing a sinking vessel needs.
amirjina
Bailing out banks is so 2008. It seems 2013 is the year of the bank “bail in”. It started with the Co-operative Bank in the UK, when the bank’s management decided to “bail in” some of its bond holders…
As Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy considers a bailout from the European Central Bank, commentators argue over whether the root of the country’s economic troubles sprang from its housing bubble, rather than prolifigate public spending.
AAP
Spaniards Fernando and Sara got married in 2007. With the help of their parents, the couple bought a house in the outer suburbs of Sevilla because they couldn’t afford one closer to the city. An art history…