Financial

Instant payments and digital banking have made deposit runs faster than ever Portfolio diversity cushions shocks, but uninsured deposits remain a fragile tail risk Stronger backstops and real-time liquidity are essential to match ten-second money

Tariffs act as taxes, not growth tools Infant-industry logic applies only narrowly Targeted subsidies and workforce policies work better By June 2025, the United States had already collected about $93.9 billion

The dollar jumped post-election on expectations of institutional discipline April 2025 tariffs flipped that belief, boosting uncertainty and softening the dollar Education systems should hedge and budget for event-driven FX swings

Incentives, not ideology, will decide the dollar–RMB digital race Regulated dollar stablecoins scale; e-CNY stays domestic as China tests HK yuan stablecoins Regulate tightly and pilot cross-border payments in education and trade—measure, don’t mandate

Misapplied memories of past crises distort investor behavior and delay recovery Overshooting stems less from ignorance than from faulty analogies that amplify panic or euphoria Policy should focus on structural safeguards and qualified capital, not generic history lessons

Dollar stablecoins hold near-total global dominance Only HKD and JPY can credibly counter in Asia Success depends on fast, disciplined execution

Tariffs nudge prices up but can shrink Treasury coupon supply Channel tariff revenue to bills to compress term premia and enable Fed cuts Extending tax cuts swells deficits, hardens long yields, and squeezes education budgets

Europe must consolidate while rearming Compliance still lags; credible plans are urgent Reprioritise spending and taxes; leverage EU-level financing By July

This article is based on ideas originally published by VoxEU – Centre for Economic Policy Research (CEPR) and has been independently rewritten and extended by The Economy editorial team. While inspired by the original analysis, the content presented here reflects a broader interpretation and additional commentary. The views expressed do not necessarily represent those of VoxEU or CEPR.

This article was independently developed by The Economy editorial team and draws on original analysis published by East Asia Forum. The content has been substantially rewritten, expanded, and reframed for broader context and relevance. All views expressed are solely those of the author and do not represent the official position of East Asia Forum or its contributors.

This article is based on ideas originally published by VoxEU – Centre for Economic Policy Research (CEPR) and has been independently rewritten and extended by The Economy editorial team. While inspired by the original analysis, the content presented here reflects a broader interpretation and additional commentary. The views expressed do not necessarily represent those of VoxEU or CEPR.

This article is based on ideas originally published by VoxEU – Centre for Economic Policy Research (CEPR) and has been independently rewritten and extended by The Economy editorial team. While inspired by the original analysis, the content presented here reflects a broader interpretation and additional commentary. The views expressed do not necessarily represent those of VoxEU or CEPR.

This article is based on ideas originally published by VoxEU – Centre for Economic Policy Research (CEPR) and has been independently rewritten and extended by The Economy editorial team. While inspired by the original analysis, the content presented here reflects a broader interpretation and additional commentary. The views expressed do not necessarily represent those of VoxEU or CEPR.

This article is based on ideas originally published by VoxEU – Centre for Economic Policy Research (CEPR) and has been independently rewritten and extended by The Economy editorial team. While inspired by the original analysis, the content presented here reflects a broader interpretation and additional commentary. The views expressed do not necessarily represent those of VoxEU or CEPR.

More value now courses through stablecoins and other crypto rails than most policy conversations acknowledge: the IMF’s 2025 analysis maps roughly $2 trillion in cross-border stablecoin flows in 2024, concentrated in North America and the Asia-Pacific, and significant relative to GDP in emerging regions. Meanwhile, FATF reports that a third of surveyed jurisdictions still lacked full Travel Rule legislation as of mid-2024, and even among adopters, supervision and enforcement lag.

This article was independently developed by The Economy editorial team and draws on original analysis published by East Asia Forum. The content has been substantially rewritten, expanded, and reframed for broader context and relevance. All views expressed are solely those of the author and do not represent the official position of East Asia Forum or its contributors.

This article is based on ideas originally published by VoxEU – Centre for Economic Policy Research (CEPR) and has been independently rewritten and extended by The Economy editorial team. While inspired by the original analysis, the content presented here reflects a broader interpretation and additional commentary. The views expressed do not necessarily represent those of VoxEU or CEPR.

This article is based on ideas originally published by VoxEU – Centre for Economic Policy Research (CEPR) and has been independently rewritten and extended by The Economy editorial team. While inspired by the original analysis, the content presented here reflects a broader interpretation and additional commentary. The views expressed do not necessarily represent those of VoxEU or CEPR.

This article is based on ideas originally published by VoxEU – Centre for Economic Policy Research (CEPR) and has been independently rewritten and extended by The Economy editorial team. While inspired by the original analysis, the content presented here reflects a broader interpretation and additional commentary. The views expressed do not necessarily represent those of VoxEU or CEPR.

This article is based on ideas originally published by VoxEU – Centre for Economic Policy Research (CEPR) and has been independently rewritten and extended by The Economy editorial team. While inspired by the original analysis, the content presented here reflects a broader interpretation and additional commentary. The views expressed do not necessarily represent those of VoxEU or CEPR.