Raghuram Rajan, Katherine Dusak Miller Distinguished Service Professor of Finance at Chicago Booth and Former Head of Reserve Bank of India

Widely considered one of the most gifted central bankers of the modern era, Raghuram Rajan is a highly prominent voice on monetary policy and the global macro economy and it was my distinct privilege to bring his insights to the Alpha Exchange.  Now the Katherine Dusak Miller Distinguished Professor of Finance at Chicago Booth, Dr. Rajan was head of the Reserve Bank of India from 2013-2016, stewarding the country’s economy and financial system through a precarious time punctuated by a violent currency sell-off and a challenging bout of inflation.  Our conversation covers monetary policy, episodes of financial crisis, the fallout from Covid-19 and that pesky conundrum, inflation.  Dr. Rajan gives the Powell Fed high marks on its forceful response to the pandemic, crediting it with staving off a self-reinforcing asset price sell-off.  At the same time, he worries that, as the Central Bank becomes more interventionist, it risks being captured by markets and will find it difficult to extricate itself from extraordinary accommodation.  Lastly, we discuss Dr. Rajan’s most recent book, “The Third Pillar”, an important contribution to how policymakers should think about the interaction between the state, markets and local communities.  I hope you enjoy this episode of the Alpha Exchange as much as I did.