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drscottjames.bsky.social
Scott James
@drscottjames.bsky.social
1.2K followers 390 following 240 posts

Reader in Political Economy, King’s College London
www.kcl.ac.uk/people/dr-scott-james
IPE of finance and tech, monetary politics, City of London
BANK POLITICS (OUP, 2023)
https://global.oup.com/academic/product/bank-politics-9780192898609?cc=gb&lang=en& .. more

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Political science 38%
Economics 34%
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drscottjames.bsky.social
Scott James @drscottjames.bsky.social · Mar 18
New article with Lucia Quaglia on how EU banks and EU regulators engaged in ‘noisy geopolitics’ by leveraging the digital sovereignty agenda to push for tighter controls on (US) bigtechs. Part of a special issue on ‘Transformation of Banking’ in Competition and Change
doi.org/10.1177/1024...

drscottjames.bsky.social
Scott James @drscottjames.bsky.social · 2d
Frieden: ‘A government that intervenes as systematically in trade is not going to have any compunctions about intervening directly in financial and capital flows, and using dollar stablecoins is part of that.’

drscottjames.bsky.social
Scott James @drscottjames.bsky.social · 6d
*Not counting Wilson twice obvs

drscottjames.bsky.social
Scott James @drscottjames.bsky.social · 6d
Fwiw, when Starmer goes we’ll have had the same number of PMs since 2007 (8) as during the entire postwar settlement from 45-79
will-davies.bsky.social Will Davies @will-davies.bsky.social · 6d
Kneejerk media-blaming is a bit like another 'socialism of fools', but does stem from the IMO obviously correct intuition that Britain's governance problems are structural, do not stem from Starmer alone, and will not dramatically disappear (or even dissipate at all) once he's replaced
samfr.bsky.social Sam Freedman @samfr.bsky.social · 6d
Getting really tired of "this is all a media concoction"...

Starmer has the lowest approval rating of any PM in history bar Truss. Senior ministers are openly and unsubtly positioning. His Chief of Staff, Director of Comms and Cab Sec have all resigned on the same day.

I mean come on...

Reposted by James Scott

will-davies.bsky.social
Will Davies @will-davies.bsky.social · 6d
Kneejerk media-blaming is a bit like another 'socialism of fools', but does stem from the IMO obviously correct intuition that Britain's governance problems are structural, do not stem from Starmer alone, and will not dramatically disappear (or even dissipate at all) once he's replaced
samfr.bsky.social Sam Freedman @samfr.bsky.social · 6d
Getting really tired of "this is all a media concoction"...

Starmer has the lowest approval rating of any PM in history bar Truss. Senior ministers are openly and unsubtly positioning. His Chief of Staff, Director of Comms and Cab Sec have all resigned on the same day.

I mean come on...

drscottjames.bsky.social
Scott James @drscottjames.bsky.social · 7d
Woefully little I’m afraid, other than Schenk’s 2010 Decline of Sterling. I once did a journal search and there’s very little political economy work on the £ or ¥ since the 90s. Tbh it’s my next project if I ever get round to it

drscottjames.bsky.social
Scott James @drscottjames.bsky.social · 7d
We’re fixated with the prospects for US dollar decline, but more immediately it’s unclear to me how long the UK’s dysfunctional politics can continue to support the world’s fourth global reserve currency
Hedge Funds Ramp Up Bearish Pound Bets as Starmer Crisis Deepens
Hedge funds are betting on more pound weakness as UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s future hangs in the balance.
www.bloomberg.com

Reposted by James Scott

jonasnahm.com
Jonas Nahm @jonasnahm.com · 9d
New essay by @steffenmurau.bsky.social on Trump admin's misunderstanding of dollar hegemony—and four possible futures for the international monetary system. 1/

www.phenomenalworld.org/analysis/tru...
Trump's Dollar | Steffen Murau
Calls to weaken the dollar have become a feature of Trump's second term. But in today's credit-based system, where the US currency is often created offshore, nativist politics cannot be translated int...
www.phenomenalworld.org

drscottjames.bsky.social
Scott James @drscottjames.bsky.social · 9d
open.substack.com/pub/theprice...
The Dollar is Stronger than we thought
New data shows we've been here before
open.substack.com

drscottjames.bsky.social
Scott James @drscottjames.bsky.social · 9d
The dollar’s longue durée

25-year cycles of de/redollarisation?

Reposted by Jonathan Portes, James Scott

duncanweldon.bsky.social
Duncan Weldon @duncanweldon.bsky.social · 9d
Hhhmmm.

Can’t see any of the likely successors making *major* changes to borrowing. You might get more taxes & more spending.
And don’t rule out a more pro-growth attitude to immigration.

www.ft.com/content/c855... Starmer camp warns leadership challenge risks economic chaos
Starmer camp warns leadership challenge risks economic chaos
Investors also signal concern at prospect of a more leftwing government
www.ft.com

Reposted by Benjamin Braun, Jonathan Hopkin, James Scott , and 2 more

mkblyth.bsky.social
Mark Blyth @mkblyth.bsky.social · 13d
Applications are open for the Finance Summer School 2026. Last two have been at Brown. This one is at LSE thanks to LSE European Institute and Huth Initiative, plus the Berkeley Program on Finance and Democracy. Stellar Line up. Apps open: forms.gle/WsEVk4Yy52Dn...

drscottjames.bsky.social
Scott James @drscottjames.bsky.social · 14d
Huge if true

drscottjames.bsky.social
Scott James @drscottjames.bsky.social · 14d
Dedollarization or Redollarization? with Jeff Frieden, Rogoff et al
www.youtube.com/live/M6vebFZ...
Dedollarization or Redollarization? | World Economic Forum Annual Meeting 2026
YouTube video by World Economic Forum
www.youtube.com

drscottjames.bsky.social
Scott James @drscottjames.bsky.social · 14d
Our stablecoins, your problem
katie0martin.ft.com Katie Martin @katie0martin.ft.com · 14d
a lot of americans are convinced we need to re-invent the entire financial wheel just because they're still paying for things with cheques. This is a you problem/skill issue, guys

Reposted by James Scott, Pepper D. Culpepper

katie0martin.ft.com
Katie Martin @katie0martin.ft.com · 14d
a lot of americans are convinced we need to re-invent the entire financial wheel just because they're still paying for things with cheques. This is a you problem/skill issue, guys

Reposted by James Scott

powelljr.bsky.social
Jeff Powell @powelljr.bsky.social · 14d
The stablecoin war: Wall Street vs crypto over the future of money - www.ft.com/content/0fe2... via @FT
The stablecoin war: Wall Street vs crypto over the future of money
Banks say rules governing the digital currency are a risk to financial stability. Are they just trying to stamp out competition?
www.ft.com

drscottjames.bsky.social
Scott James @drscottjames.bsky.social · 16d
History doesn’t repeat or rhyme, it just tortures us
alanbeattie.bsky.social Alan Beattie @alanbeattie.bsky.social · 16d
This works best if you imagine a delusional eccentric who has watched too many motivational videos shouting at themselves in a mirror.

Reposted by James Scott

alanbeattie.bsky.social
Alan Beattie @alanbeattie.bsky.social · 16d
This works best if you imagine a delusional eccentric who has watched too many motivational videos shouting at themselves in a mirror.

drscottjames.bsky.social
Scott James @drscottjames.bsky.social · 17d
The more cynically minded might view Trump’s reluctant reconciliation with dollar stability - backtracking on Mar a Lago, appointing Warsh, etc - as creating monetary space for greater geopolitical adventurism in 2026

drscottjames.bsky.social
Scott James @drscottjames.bsky.social · 17d
A transition not a rupture
peark.es George Pearkes @peark.es · 17d
Trump officially picks Warsh as Fed Chair
Donald J. Trump @realDonaldTrump I am pleased to announce that I am nominating Kevin Warsh to be the CHAIRMAN OF THE BOARD OF GOVERNORS OF THE FEDERAL RESERVE SYSTEM. Kevin currently serves as the Shepard Family Distinguished Visiting Fellow in Economics at the Hoover Institution, and Lecturer at the Stanford Graduate School of Business. He is a Partner of Stanley Druckenmiller at Duquesne Family Office LLC. Kevin received his A.B. from Stanford University, and J.D. from Harvard Law School. He has conducted extensive research in the field of Economics and Finance. Kevin issued an Independent Report to the Bank of England proposing reforms in the conduct of Monetary Policy in the United Kingdom. Parliament adopted the Report's recommendations. Kevin Warsh became the youngest Fed Governor, ever, at 35, and served as a Member of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System from 2006 until 2011, as the Federal Reserve's Representative to the Group of Twenty (G-20), and as the Board's Emissary to the Emerging and Advanced Economies in Asia. In addition, he was Administrative Governor, managing and overseeing the Board's operations, personnel, and financial performance. Prior to his appointment to the Board, from 2002 until 2006, Kevin served as Special Assistant to the President for Economic Policy, and Executive Secretary of the White House National Economic Council. Previously, Kevin was a member of the Mergers & Acquisitions Department at Morgan Stanley & Co., in New York, serving as Vice President and Executive Director. I have known Kevin for a long period of time, and have no doubt that he will go down as one of the GREAT Fed Chairmen, maybe the best. On top of everything else, he is “central casting,” and he will never let you down. Congratulations Kevin! PRESIDENT DONALD J. TRUMP 27 ReTruths 90 Likes Jan 30, 2026, 6:48 AM

drscottjames.bsky.social
Scott James @drscottjames.bsky.social · 17d
So we started Trump’s ‘Janarchy’ with Maduro, detoured via Greenland and Davos, and end with Kevin Warsh

Agency meets structure, a love story

drscottjames.bsky.social
Scott James @drscottjames.bsky.social · 17d
Wait
www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026...
How a billionaire with interests in Greenland encouraged Trump to acquire the territory
US president’s friend Ronald Lauder – who first proposed Arctic expansion – is now making deals in the island
www.theguardian.com

drscottjames.bsky.social
Scott James @drscottjames.bsky.social · 17d
Capital called, it wants the Fed back

Reposted by James Scott

financialtimes.com
Financial Times @financialtimes.com · 17d
Kevin Warsh, the Fed chair nominee forged by the 2008 financial crisis ft.trib.al/sdyW6DT
Kevin Warsh, the Fed chair nominee forged by the 2008 financial crisis
Trump’s pick will take the reins of the world’s top central bank during one of the most consequential periods in its history
ft.trib.al

Reposted by James Scott

peark.es
George Pearkes @peark.es · 17d
Trump officially picks Warsh as Fed Chair
Donald J. Trump @realDonaldTrump I am pleased to announce that I am nominating Kevin Warsh to be the CHAIRMAN OF THE BOARD OF GOVERNORS OF THE FEDERAL RESERVE SYSTEM. Kevin currently serves as the Shepard Family Distinguished Visiting Fellow in Economics at the Hoover Institution, and Lecturer at the Stanford Graduate School of Business. He is a Partner of Stanley Druckenmiller at Duquesne Family Office LLC. Kevin received his A.B. from Stanford University, and J.D. from Harvard Law School. He has conducted extensive research in the field of Economics and Finance. Kevin issued an Independent Report to the Bank of England proposing reforms in the conduct of Monetary Policy in the United Kingdom. Parliament adopted the Report's recommendations. Kevin Warsh became the youngest Fed Governor, ever, at 35, and served as a Member of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System from 2006 until 2011, as the Federal Reserve's Representative to the Group of Twenty (G-20), and as the Board's Emissary to the Emerging and Advanced Economies in Asia. In addition, he was Administrative Governor, managing and overseeing the Board's operations, personnel, and financial performance. Prior to his appointment to the Board, from 2002 until 2006, Kevin served as Special Assistant to the President for Economic Policy, and Executive Secretary of the White House National Economic Council. Previously, Kevin was a member of the Mergers & Acquisitions Department at Morgan Stanley & Co., in New York, serving as Vice President and Executive Director. I have known Kevin for a long period of time, and have no doubt that he will go down as one of the GREAT Fed Chairmen, maybe the best. On top of everything else, he is “central casting,” and he will never let you down. Congratulations Kevin! PRESIDENT DONALD J. TRUMP 27 ReTruths 90 Likes Jan 30, 2026, 6:48 AM

drscottjames.bsky.social
Scott James @drscottjames.bsky.social · 18d
Narratives of dollar declinism also underestimate the probability that dominance actually strengthens: not because the US suddenly rediscovers functional politics but scale of geoeconomic risks facing Europe (far right, Russia) and China (debt mountain, energy constraints)
Don’t bet on dollar dethronement
If you want to see how entrenched the US currency is in the global system, look at the foreign exchange swap market
www.ft.com

drscottjames.bsky.social
Scott James @drscottjames.bsky.social · 18d
What has arguably changed is that the quiet politics of finance now confronts not just the noisy but the personalist, vengeful and extractive politics of MAGA

drscottjames.bsky.social
Scott James @drscottjames.bsky.social · 18d
An element of trying to reinvent the wheel here when theories of instrumental power / power of inaction vs structural power of markets still does a pretty good job
Chartbook 431 Convening, staging, acting ... and was it never about Greenland and mainly about the Fed? Which Davos-theory won?
To matter or not to matter?
open.substack.com