Leaked Lunch with The Blind Spot

Izabella Kaminska meets with writer economist Guy Standing at Da Paolo restaurant near Goodge street to hear all about his latest book 'The Blue Commons'.Guy is usually better known for his work on Universal Basic Income, but in this book he delves into the geopolitics and economics of the oceans and discovers a myriad of tensions and unnecessary complexities. The book covers everything from large nations bullying smaller nations into giving up eco-friendly fishing policies to the profiteering by the Crown Estate in commandeering much of the British seabed.

Izabella sits down for lunch with Tom Hayes, the former UBS Libor trader who was convicted in 2015 of conspiracy to defraud after being accused by the Serious Fraud of Office of conspiring with numerous other individuals to procure or make submissions of rates into the Yen LIBOR setting process that were false or misleading, thereby intending to prejudice the economic interests of others. Tom believes he was unfairly convicted and is campaigning to clear his name, especially now that the BBC's Andy Verity has unearthed new evidence, made up of a leaked cache of internal bank telephone calls, embroils far more senior banking figures in the affair.

Finance expert Huw Van Steenis joins Izabella Kaminska for brunch at La Brasseria in Notting Hill for a discussion about CBDCs, fintech and ESG. Before joining managing consultant firm Oliver Wyman as vice chair, Huw was global head of strategy at asset manager Schroders and a top dog within the equities research division at Morgan Stanley. In 2018 he was appointed a special advisor to then BOE governor Mark Carney, on the long-term future of the financial system.

Izabella Kaminska sits down with economist and author Nouriel Roubini for a modest "brunch" at the Ned in the heart of the City of London. The duo discuss Roubini's new book "Mega Threats", including its Malthusian themes, the global inflation outlook and how the crypto collapse is playing out. The conversation also touches on some of the inherent contradictions in policies currently being deployed to keep the global economy on track. The recording took place on December 7 and the bill came to £47.25 (Nouriel only had a coffee in the end, while Izzy had a post-facto avocado and eggs on toast).

In this Leaked Lunch episode Izabella Kaminska orders in room service with economist and author Pippa Malmgren at the Park Hyatt in Zurich. Pippa is probably best known for her pointed ability to unpack how statecraft and geopolitics interconnect with economics, drawing on factors most other economists overlook. The discussion covers Pippa's views on crypto, geopolitics and inflation as well as her time spent as an advisor to George Bush Jr in the White House.

In this special edition of the Leaked Lunch podcast series we substitute a face-to-face lunch for a cross-continent Zoom call with Erik Townsend, the host of the Macro Voices financial podcast. Erik joins us to discuss the important topic of media trustworthiness and how independent voices like his can bring balance back to publishing. We dicuss the media's treatment of the Wuhan lab leak theory, the pluses and minuses of independent media and whether censorship can ever be justified. The conversation was recorded on Tuesday, November 22, 2022.

In this Leaked Lunch episode Izabella Kaminska meets with James Aitken, of Aitken Advisors, at French restaurant La Vacherin in Chiswick. James is one of the UK's top financial liquidity and plumbing experts, advising up to one hundred of the most influential capital pools in the world. James gained his experience working for UBS and AIG Trading. The episode was recorded on October 14, the day Kwasi Kwarteng loses his job as UK chancellor.

China expert and founder of Enodo Economics, Diana Choyleva, joins Izabella Kaminska for a spot of Italian food at La Famiglia restaurant in Chelsea. They discuss the pressures facing China, the difference between being trained as an economist under the communist system versus the Western system and the importance of independent research.

Izabella Kaminska sits down with the World Economic Forum's head of comms, Adrian Monck, at La Finestra Italian restaurant in Geneva. They discuss the challenges facing modern media today, what the Forum is really all about and what's behind "the Great Reset" conspiracy movement. The podcast was recorded on August 17, and the bill came to 128 Swiss francs.

Former UBS chief economist George Magnus joins Izabella Kaminska for dim sum at Royal China restaurant in Baker Street, London. They discuss the future of Sino-Western relations, productivity challenges for the West and the future of Taiwan. The podcast was recorded on July 6, before Nancy Pelosi's trip to Taiwan on August 2.

Helen Thomas joins Izabella Kaminska for a spot of sushi and ceviche at Ayllu in Paddington. They discuss the growing politicisation of finance, the gamma risk in your portfolio and why nobody is covering the ETF story properly. The podcast was recorded on July 4, just before Boris Johnson stepped down as UK prime minister.

Izabella Kaminska invites the FT's Dan McCrum and Paul Murphy for a glass of Gavi and wasabi calamari at Casa Dino Restaurant in Chiswick to celebrate the launch of Dan's new book Money Men, the story of the downfall of payments company Wirecard.