Introducing: The Story of Money
5/1/20261 min
The economist John Kenneth Galbraith once quipped that “there can be few fields of human endeavour in which history counts for so little as in the world of finance.” This show sets out to prove the opposite. Each week, FT columnist Gillian Tett and FT Alphaville editor Robin Wigglesworth dig into the ideas, personalities and institutions that have shaped global finance.
From unregulated banking in 19th-century frontier America to institutionalised debt jubilees in ancient Mesopotamia, and from the birth of credit derivatives to the great market meltdowns of the past, Robin and Gillian uncover the story of money because time and again, the same manias and mistakes resurface. Tune in and you might just understand where the next financial opportunities and disasters could be hiding.
Subscribe to The Story of Money wherever you get your podcasts and watch the show on YouTube.
Learn more about the show at ft.com/tsom and find out more about Gillian Tett here and Robin Wigglesworth here.
Follow FT Alphaville here.
Hosts: Gillian Tett and Robin Wigglesworth
Producer: Lulu Smyth
Senior Producer: Michela Tindera
Executive Producers: Flo Phillips and Manuela Saragosa
Original music and sound engineering: Breen Turner
Podcast Development: Laura Clarke
Global Head of Audio: Cheryl Brumley
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Transcript
17 sentencesGillian Tett· Host0:00
So they say that money runs the world.
Robin Wigglesworth· Host0:01
But the story of money itself, well, that's where things get really interesting.
Gillian Tett· Host0:05
From wildcat banks on the American frontier- It was about as difficult to become a banker as it was to become a bricklayer.
Speaker 2· Soundbite0:12
Many people viewed them as con men.
Robin Wigglesworth· Host0:15
To ancient rulers wiping out debts thousands of years ago.
Gillian Tett· Host0:18
When a king came to the throne, and Hammurabi did this himself, one of the very first things he did was to cancel everyone's debts. Lenders really did, you know, break the tablets on which the loans were recorded. People were free. History, but especially financial history, has an uncanny way of repeating itself.
Robin Wigglesworth· Host0:35
How, you might ask? Well, we've got a brand new podcast that explains exactly how, The Story of Money from the Financial Times.
Gillian Tett· Host0:42
Hosted by me, Gillian Tett.
Robin Wigglesworth· Host0:44
And me, Robin Wigglesworth.
Gillian Tett· Host0:46
Each week, we go back in time- To understand what the forces are that really shape the financial world we live in today. Because whether it's artificial intelligence bubbles or the next big market crash- Chances are, it's all happened before. And if you don't understand the past- Well, you just might lose money in the future. So follow The Story of Money from the Financial Times, launching April the 22nd, new episodes every week, wherever you get your podcasts.