CONTRACT WITH INDIA
…our mission is to make India great by developing and promoting policies based on the principles of limited government, free markets, individual freedom and rights, equality of justice and individual responsibility…
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IN THE PRESS
CONTRADICTORY MOVES IN INTEREST RATES
There are broadly two kinds of pension plans. In defined benefit plans, the employer guarantees a fixed (defined) pension benefit to the employee upon retirement. The risk associated with investing the pension corpus is borne by the employer. In defined contribution plans, the contributions made by the employee are defined but the retirement benefits are not fixed and, instead, depend on the return generated by investing the corpus. The investment [...]
ABOLISH THE ANGEL INVESTOR TAX
We live in the age of entrepreneurship. The vast majority of products, services and technologies we use today come from new start-ups, and over 70 per cent of global employment is attributed to these new-age entrepreneurs. It is vital for policymakers to understand how this ecosystem works and how to incentivise it to generate maximum economic growth and employment. Capital is the lifeblood of any new business. The various sources [...]
RBI’s INDEPENDENCE AT STAKE
The Ministry of Finance and the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) are engaged in a dangerous game of chicken. Game theory tells us that "winning" or playing such a game to its conclusion is not in the best interest of either player. The consequences will be devastating for the country’s shaky banking system and credit and equity markets. There are three main issues of contention between the government and the [...]
VALUE DESTRUCTION IN STATE RUN BANKS
Who pays when you make a mistake? You do. Who pays when the government makes a mistake? Yes, Still you…..Anonymous In a bizarre move the government, which controls seventy per cent of all bank assets in India through state-controlled banks, decided to merge three banks into a larger entity. Two smaller banks, Vijaya Bank and Dena Bank, were combined with a larger bank, the Bank of Baroda. Each of these [...]
PEOPLE’S FIGHT AGAINST GOVT. CORRUPTION
There is an important and growing trend in democracies around the world. Public outrage over governmental corruption is toppling more and more leaders. In the last six months alone, leaders from Malaysia, Spain, South Africa, Armenia, Peru, and Slovakia have been forced to resign on charges related to corruption. In the past five years, more than 10 per cent of countries in the world have experienced leadership changes related to [...]
INDIA’S LOST DECADE
Countries pass through stages on the road to economic prosperity. Economist W.W.Rostow postulated five such stages of economic development: the traditional society, pre-take-off, take -off, drive-to-maturity, and period of mass consumption. The year 1991 was a watershed point in India’s economic history. It marked a distinct move away from socialist economic policies and an embracing of economic freedom and free-market policies. As a result, the economy started to grow, slowly [...]
INDIA’S ATLAS SHRUGGED
It is estimated that since 2014 about 23,000 millionaires have left India to settle in other countries (Morgan Stanley). The vast majority of them weren't tax evaders or bank looters running away from the law. They were the risk takers, wealth creators and employment generators that built this country's industry. And despite all the falsehood about increasing inequality, these people were the pioneers of the new aspirational India. These were [...]
TIME TO SELL STOCKS?
In an article dated May 31st, 2017, I wrote that the Indian stock market had room to run on the upside and that a 20% increase over the next two years was highly probable. I mentioned two things that would bring an end to this bull run: a declining currency, and disappearing liquidity. Since that writing the market has gone up around 19.5 %, the rupee has dropped to reach an [...]
WATERING DOWN EMINENCE
What comes to mind when you hear the word “eminent” ? Most reasonable people would associate eminence with someone that has attained a level of achievement far beyond others through years of hard work, has a proven and demonstrable track-record of excellence and has unquestioned integrity. Think Abdul Kalam, Mother Teresa, Sachin Tendulkar, Lata Mangeshkar, Ravi Shankar. Each of them got to the stature of eminence through years of dedicated [...]
NOT HEDGING OIL PRICES IS REALLY DUMB
Governments and bureaucracies were never designed to produce strategic thinking and efficient outcomes. Decision making requires courage, and when the primary objective is self-preservation, courage takes a back seat. As a small-government libertarian I don’t expect much from governments or their bureaucracies, but sometimes even I am shocked at their level of incompetence and irresponsibility. In preparing for a lecture recently I was astounded to read that oil companies in [...]