Sovereign Debt

Reviews / Votes

Sovereign debt around the world has reached near-historic levels. Should we worry about it? Anyone interested in this question must have this book on their desk. The book is a brilliant, expansive guide on how to think about sovereign debt in historical and modern contexts. * Atif Mian, John H. Laporte, Jr, Class of 1967 Professor of Economics, Princeton University. * Most countries have experienced difficulties with the accumulation of high levels of public debt. In many cases, there has been default or restructuring. The maturity as well as the currency composition of public debt have important effects on the economy and its public finance. These are some of the issues discussed in this book, which is a very important contribution for academics and practitioners. The authors succeeded in discussing technically complex issues for a broad audience. Practitioners will learn a number of policy lessons on public debt management and fiscal policy. Academics will learn many stylized facts and policy challenges that should enlighten good research work. * Jose De Gregorio, Dean School of Economics and Business, Universidad de Chile, Nonresident Senior Fellow, Peterson Institute for International Economics. * In todays world we witness rising debt levels in many countries, at times coupled with unsustainable lending practices, insufficient transparency and imperfect creditor coordination mechanisms against the backdrop of historically low interest rates. This poses a significant challenge for the international financial community in its effort to preserve global financial stability. This comprehensive and thought provoking book is a most valuable contribution to the much needed knowledge on these topics in these interesting times. * Wopke Hoekstra, Minister of Finance of the Netherlands. * It is rare to find a volume on sovereign debt that is so clearly written, comprehensive, and supremely usable for all those practicing (or interested) in the topic. This is that volumeunique in breadth and written by top scholars and practitioners in a way that is accessible to the non-expert. I recommend it highly. * Odette Lienau, Professor of Law and Associate Dean, Cornell Law School and author of Rethinking Sovereign Debt: Politics, Reputation, and Legitimacy in Modern Finance. * This is an outstanding book in many ways. Most remarkably, it manages to cover the budgetary, macroeconomic and financial market dimensions of public debt. The combination of historical analysis, discussion of key concepts and policy evaluation offers insights for practitioners and academics alike. Many thanks to all those who contributed to this volume. * Olaf Scholz, Minister of Finance for Germany. *