Welcome to Econ Talk, part of the Library of Economics and Liberty.

I'm your host, Russ Roberts of Stanford University's Hoover Institution.

Our website is econtalk.org, where you can subscribe, comment on this podcast,

and find links and other information related to today's conversation.

We'll also find our archives where you can listen to every episode we've ever done going back to 2006.

Our email address is mailadycontalk.org. We'd love to hear from you.

Today is November 7th, 2017, and we're recording this episode of e-contalk in front of a live audience in New York City.

It's part of Atlas Network's Liberty Forum.

I have to say our hotel is on Broadway, and this is probably as close as I'll get to being performing on Broadway.

I did perform off-off Broadway as Adam Smith, but in a certain dimension, this is better.

Atlas Network encourages and supports free market think tanks around the world with the goal of increasing economic freedom.

And we're going to talk more about their specific activities.

We have two guests today, Matt Warner and Simeon D'Ancoff.

Matt is the chief operating officer of Atlas Network.

Simeon D'Ancoff is director of the Financial Markets Group at the London School of Economics,

and he's the creator of the Doing Business Report at the World Bank,

which has been mentioned on e-contalk as part of the World Bank's assessment of development efforts and economic policy around the world.

The Doing Business Report is an attempt to measure the red tape and other barriers to business activity in now 190 countries.

Simeon is also the former Minister of Finance of Bulgaria,

which is an unusual experience for a PhD in economics, actually done things in the real world.

Simeon and Matt, welcome to e-contalk.

Thank you.

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