Ben White
Showing 1–7 of 7 transcripts.
- Milken Institute1h 0m
Finance as a Force for Good
Ben White, Kate Barton, Mark Machin, Jeffrey M. Solomon, Andrew Weinberg
Panelists discuss a widening divergence between ebullient financial markets and weak economic fundamentals, driven by $27 trillion in global fiscal stimulus that is largely diverting into asset reflation rather than immediate consumption. The discussion highlights how regulatory shifts toward revenue generation and carbon pricing, alongside the rise of family offices integrating sustainability values, aim to redirect capital toward real economy growth and climate innovation. Experts emphasize that future stability requires pivoting from financial engineering to investing in people and middle-market firms while consolidating fragmented ESG reporting to ensure long-term value creation.
- Milken Institute1h 3m
eSports: The Bumpy Ride to ROI
Ben White, Sam Englebardt, Peter Levin, Kristen Salvatore, Ari Segal, David Rockefeller Jr., Emily Fortuna, Amanda Han, Eric Schmidt, Ari Schwartzmann, Sam Nelsons, Chai, Peter Barron, Peter Barry Kaufmann, Kevin, Carlos, Paul
Industry leaders highlight that gaming now surpasses film and television in scale, with a user base of 2.6 billion driving a strategic shift for traditional media and sports organizations to secure the Gen Z demographic. Investment activity is surging as entities like Immortals Gaming Club adopt holding company structures to capture high valuations and leverage the mobile boom, while platforms like Twitch demonstrate superior engagement metrics that attract non-endemic advertising. Amidst these rapid expansions, the sector faces evolving structural debates regarding player welfare, the rise of influencer-driven brands over traditional franchises, and the impending need for standardized unionization and global regulatory frameworks.
- Milken Institute57 min
Financial Regulation: New Era, New Regulators
Ben White, J. Christopher Giancarlo, Jeb Hensarling, Joo-Yung Lee, Craig Phillips, Michael Piwowar
The Trump administration and key congressional leaders are advancing a regulatory strategy centered on tailoring rules to bank size and reducing compliance burdens to stimulate GDP growth, with the Senate Banking Bill S.2155 serving as a legislative starting point despite limitations on large institutions. Agencies including the SEC and CFTC are recalibrating specific mandates regarding capital formation, derivatives, and digital assets to enhance market efficiency while addressing unintended consequences of the original Dodd-Frank implementation. Industry experts like Fitch Ratings caution that while targeted relief is necessary, maintaining core stability measures such as stress testing remains critical to prevent systemic risks as the regulatory framework evolves.
- Milken Institute1h 1m
Business Tax Reform: Hammering Out the Details
Ben White, Chris Campbell, Ross DeVol, Douglas Holtz-Eakin, Gene Sperling, Mark Weinberger
The White House and Republican congressional leadership have unified behind a tax reform package leveraging budget reconciliation to pass with a simple majority, though experts warn that claims of self-funding through growth are mathematically inconsistent with current proposals. Key debates center on the inclusion of corporate cuts alongside individual rate reductions, while panelists express skepticism regarding the Border Adjustment Tax's viability and the likelihood that the final legislation will fail deficit neutrality tests under the Byrd Rule. Consequently, the anticipated outcome is a significant short-term stimulus with temporary deficits rather than a permanent, revenue-neutral reform, leaving bipartisan support unlikely without structural adjustments favoring the middle class and infrastructure investment.
- Milken Institute1h 0m
Trans-Pacific Partnership: A Conversation with U.S. Trade Representative Michael Froman
With five and a half years of negotiations concluded, the Obama administration is aggressively pursuing ratification of the Trans-Pacific Partnership before its term ends, aiming to secure $130 billion in annual economic gains and establish high regional standards to counter China's influence. Despite facing significant political headwinds from populist figures and the pharmaceutical industry over specific intellectual property and currency provisions, officials argue that the agreement's binding labor and environmental rules offer a strategic alternative to state-driven models. By utilizing Trade Promotion Authority for an expedited congressional vote, the administration seeks to prevent legislative delays that the Peterson Institute estimates could cost the U.S. economy over $90 billion.
- Milken Institute56 min
Investing in America: Transforming the Tax Code, Tackling the Debt
Ben White, Maya MacGuineas, David Perdue, Mark Warner, Mark Weinberger
Panelists warn that the U.S. federal debt has reached post-World War II highs, with mandatory spending consuming 70% of the budget and interest costs poised to exceed $1 trillion annually without structural reform. Despite dire projections from the Congressional Budget Office, 2016 presidential candidates on both sides have proposed tax cuts or spending expansions lacking credible offsetting mechanisms, driven by political gridlock and a broken federal budget process. Experts advocate for a "grand bargain" model similar to Simpson-Bowles, urging immediate action on international tax reform and entitlement adjustments to preserve the dollar's status as the global reserve currency.
- Milken Institute1h 1m
Architecture of the American Economy: Policies to Drive Economic Growth and Our Competitiveness
Ben White, Shaun Donovan, Alan Schwartz, Mark Weinberger
Key figures from Guggenheim Partners and EY analyzed the U.S. economy's projected 1% Q1 growth, highlighting the tension between a record job streak and persistent middle-class wage stagnation amidst structural headwinds like an aging demographic. The discussion detailed the administration's proposed fiscal strategies to lift sequestration and the critical case for Trade Promotion Authority to prevent China from setting global trade rules. Furthermore, experts debated the risks of secular stagnation and deflation while examining specific tax reform pillars designed to repatriate overseas earnings and fund a $240 billion infrastructure package through corporate rate reductions.