Hello and welcome to the Americano podcast, a series of discussions about American power, politics and society.

On each episode, I will talk to an American expert or an expert on America about something that's going on in America in

2023. I am delighted to be joined today by Joe Wisenthal, who is co-host of the Odd Lots

podcast at Bloomberg, and we're going to be asking the big question, is capitalism melting down?

Joe, first of all, I'd like to say to anyone listening, do listen if you want to follow the crisis, the financial crisis that's sort of happening.

Listen to the Odd Lots podcast because it's absolutely brilliant.

And secondly, Joe, you know from your previous appearances, you're a friend of the podcast,

you know that I tend towards the gloomy, I think.

And I just sort of start from this very gloomy perspective of saying, let's go back to 2008.

Sure.

And, you know, exceptional central bank or state government interventions in the financial markets.

Yeah.

Where that was sort of seen to be a rare fix that was necessary.

But over the last 15 years, these massive interventions have been coming with increasing frequency.

We saw perhaps the greatest intervention ever during the pandemic.

And that seems very important, reassured the markets,

reassured the world that everything could be okay. We're now seeing inflation not coming under control,

central banks increasing interest rates, the Federal Reserve particularly quite aggressively.

And as a result of those high interest rates, Silicon Valley Reserve particularly quite aggressively. And as a result of those high

interest rates, Silicon Valley Bank has gone kaput. And it has been rescued. The Federal Reserve has

stepped in, the Biden administration has stepped in, and they are guaranteeing the deposits of everybody,

essentially backstopping any risk.

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