New Institutional Economics examines how institutions - such as laws, norms, and organizations - shape economic outcomes by reducing uncertainty and transaction costs.

It emphasizes the importance of property rights and governance in development, but faces criticism for being hard to measure and sometimes overlooking issues like inequality.

New Institutional Economics studies how institutions—like laws, norms, and organizations—shape economic outcomes by reducing uncertainty and transaction costs. It highlights the importance of property rights, governance, and historical context in economic development.

While influential in policy and development studies, it faces criticism for being hard to quantify and for sometimes overlooking issues like inequality and power dynamics.

Embedded finance and digital payments are transforming the financial industry in 2025. Financial services like payments, loans, and insurance are being integrated into non-financial platforms, making transactions seamless and supporting the rise of neobanks.

Key trends include the use of AI for personalized services, faster payment systems, and blockchain for secure transactions. These innovations increase convenience and accessibility but also bring challenges such as regulatory scrutiny, data privacy, and the need for strong cybersecurity.

Behavioral economics combines psychology with economics to explain how real people make decisions, highlighting that individuals are not always rational. It explores biases like loss aversion and heuristics, and introduces concepts such as nudges to improve choices.

The field is widely used in policy, finance, and marketing, but faces criticism for lacking a unified framework and for challenges in applying its insights broadly.

Austrian economics focuses on individual choices and subjective value, arguing that markets work best with minimal government intervention. It rejects mathematical modeling and favors logical reasoning. Critics say it lacks empirical evidence and overlooks market failures, but its ideas influence libertarian thought and debates on central banking.

In 2025, regulatory changes and compliance are central to the finance sector. Regulatory technology (RegTech) is rapidly advancing, using AI and real-time monitoring to automate compliance tasks like KYC and AML, reduce costs, and improve accuracy.

Key trends include predictive analytics, unified financial crime systems, and a shift toward risk-based frameworks, especially for digital assets.

While automation streamlines operations and helps avoid fines, challenges remain with global regulatory differences, cybersecurity risks, and model errors. Innovations such as blockchain and cloud-based solutions are helping institutions adapt, and investing in RegTech is seen as essential for maintaining competitiveness and resilience in a fast-changing financial landscape.

Monetarism, led by Milton Friedman, is an economic theory that emphasizes the importance of controlling the money supply to manage economic activity and inflation. It argues that monetary policy is more effective than fiscal policy for ensuring economic stability.

Monetarists advocate for steady, rules-based increases in money supply rather than discretionary interventions. While monetarism influenced major policies in the 1970s and 1980s, its predictive power has been challenged by financial innovations and economic crises.

Today, central banks use monetarist insights for inflation targeting but also incorporate elements from other economic theories.

In 2025, financial planning is being transformed by automation, AI, and upskilling. Generative AI enables real-time forecasting and budgeting, while automation reduces errors and frees finance professionals for strategic tasks. Cloud-based platforms improve collaboration, and upskilling in AI and data analytics is a priority for nearly half of finance leaders. These changes make financial planning more agile and accurate, benefiting both organizations and consumers.

Innovations like integrated cloud tools and real-time analytics are helping finance teams adapt, ensuring they remain competitive and relevant in a rapidly evolving, tech-driven landscape.

Tokenization of real-world assets (RWAs)—digitizing assets like real estate, bonds, and art on blockchain—is revolutionizing finance in 2025, with a market surge of 260% to $23 billion. Coupled with decentralized finance (DeFi), it’s unlocking liquidity and efficiency, potentially transforming $30 trillion in assets by 2030. This article explores trends, applications, challenges, and the future of tokenization and blockchain.

Marxian economics, rooted in Karl Marx’s 19th-century critique of capitalism, analyzes economies through class struggle and historical materialism. Developed in Das Kapital (1867) and The Communist Manifesto (1848, with Engels), it views economic systems as evolving through contradictions, with capitalism’s internal flaws leading to its collapse.

Sustainable and green finance, centered on environmental, social, and governance (ESG) investing, is a cornerstone of the financial landscape in 2025.

September showed a global economy tougher than expected—OECD's upgrade to 3.2% growth clashes with World Bank's 2.3% slowdown warning, labour holds firm but inflation sticks. Markets ended down weekly despite Friday's bounce, as valuation worries and tariffs temper Fed-fuelled gains. With debt burdens high and AI reshaping jobs, resilience meets risks head-on.

Neoclassical economics, emerging in the late 19th century, is the backbone of modern mainstream economics, emphasizing rational choice, marginal utility, and market equilibrium. Pioneered by Alfred Marshall, William Stanley Jevons, Carl Menger, and Leon Walras, it built on classical economics but introduced mathematical rigor and subjective value.

AI and ML are pivotal in 2025, offering unmatched efficiency and innovation. Financial institutions embracing these technologies will gain a competitive edge, provided they navigate challenges like bias and regulation responsibly. The future of finance is data-driven, with AI at its core, promising a more efficient and accessible ecosystem.

September 14-20 was a turning point: the Fed’s rate cut sparked market euphoria, but sticky inflation and a cautious outlook kept the mood in check. With tariffs, geopolitics, and debt concerns simmering, the global economy’s resilience is tested. The IMF and World Bank see growth, but risks are mounting. Is this a soft landing or a bumpy ride ahead? Tune in next week for the next chapter.

Keynesian economics, developed by John Maynard Keynes in the 1930s, emphasizes government intervention to manage demand and stabilize economies. It argues that aggregate demand drives output and employment, not supply. Key concepts include fiscal policy, the multiplier effect, and the rejection of Say's Law. Keynesian policies dominated post-WWII but faced challenges during the 1970s stagflation. Despite criticisms, it remains central to macroeconomic policy, advocating countercyclical measures.

Classical economics, emerging in the late 18th century, emphasizes free markets, individual initiative, and minimal government intervention. Key figures like Adam Smith, David Ricardo, and Thomas Malthus shaped its principles, advocating for self-regulating markets, division of labor, and comparative advantage. Criticisms include its neglect of market failures and assumptions of perfect information. Its legacy influences modern neoliberal policies and global trade patterns.

Summary of what's happened in the markets this week.

In this episode we will discuss "the Greeks", risk measures that help traders understand how different factors affect the price of options. Key Greeks include Delta (sensitivity to underlying asset price changes), Gamma (rate of change of Delta), Theta (time decay), Vega (sensitivity to volatility), and Rho (sensitivity to interest rates). Mastery of these measures is essential for effective hedging and risk management strategies.

In this episode we talk about alpha and beta, key metrics for evaluating performance and risk. Together, alpha and beta help investors assess whether returns are due to good investment choices or broader market movements.