Finance in focus at Warwick Economics Summit

Warwick Economics Summit sold out to eager audiences fascinated by the credit crunch.

“It is coming of age and turning into an event the university can be proud of,” said Chris Spry, talks coordinator.

The conference hosted 400 students, 140 from universities as far as the Caribbean, and ten speakers from academia, banking, government and media.

Sadeq Sayeed offered a banker’s perspective on the credit crunch. Mr. Sayeed, vice president of Nomura, spoke about how governments have failed to help banks during the crisis despite having the best intentions.

He highlighted the government’s move to increase its stake in the Royal Bank of Scotland, which did not prevent a continued slide in RBS shares.

Mr. Sayeed said banks had a system of regulation and incentives which far bettered those of government. He pointed out that managers lost 70 per cent of their personal wealth in the financial crisis.

When dealing with such crises, “the law of the jungle should prevail,” he said.

Kevin Kallaugher [Kal], The Economist’s resident cartoonist, shared his experiences in media, where cartoons provoke the strongest reactions but the cartoonist is seen as “dispensable.”

However, Mr. Kallaugher has said that in America “the editorial cartoonist can influence change in a way that British cartoonists can’t.”

The Valentine’s Day dinner party was not such a savage affair. Anelia Uzunova, coordinator, called it an improvement on last year’s event, praising the Social team, who “outdid themselves.”

Guests, from Warwick and beyond, tucked into a two-course buffet, before a quiz teased their minds and music their toes.

Miss Uzunova did, however, admit some room for improvement.

The conference next year, she said, should aim to attract 200 delegates, or half its guests, from other universities.

She also said next year’s team should “expand the scope of the talks” beyond finance and crises. “Hopefully, it would have all blown over by then!”