Lehman Lessons

Though it has now been a decade since the collapse of Lehman Brothers, lingering questions about the global financial crisis remain. Chief among them is whether it can happen again.

In this Big Picture, Howard Davies laments that despite the global nature of the crash, financial regulations have yet to be harmonized internationally. And Jeffrey Frankel warns that the US is now pursuing the same kind of pro-cyclical fiscal agenda that had tied its hands in 2008.

Meanwhile, Richard Kozul-Wright argues that the post-crisis response has done nothing either to change the culture of the financial sector or to prevent a massive build-up of global debt. And, as Carmen Reinhart pointed out last year, the loose monetary conditions that have made legacy debts from the crisis more manageable are now coming to an end.

For his part, Jim O'Neill worries that while the global imbalances that gave rise to the crisis have been addressed, a dangerous short-term outlook still drives business. And Harold James adds that the problem is not just business practices, but also the broader cultural impact of rapid technological change and disruption.