Breaking the Wall of Global Economic Crises

The current period of robust international capital flows is not novel. Money crossed borders freely at the end of the 19th century. Before World War I, people could, via telephone, buy goods or invest in companies located anywhere in the world. Alas, two world wars and the Great Depression impeded financial globalization. The Bretton Woods period introduced capital controls, hindering the free flow of money. Thus, the world didn’t return to the 19th century’s levels of financial globalization until the 1980s or 1990s. Since then, other than a brief dip following the 2008 financial crisis, overseas capital flows have soared.