Free Market Road Show Budapest 2023 – Is the standard worth striving for?

There is no need to describe the many problems and crises of our time. But there is a great need to look at the causes and refute the simplified and politically opportune explanations. Only if we know exactly what the problems are and how they arose will we be able to find the right solution.

New standards have come into force in almost all areas of policy and they are changing our lives, sometimes noticeably, sometimes surreptitiously, but often permanently. Let’s explore if these new standards are worth striving for.

Participants:
- John Chisholm, CEO of John Chisholm Ventures, a startup advisory and angel investing group
-Martin Gundinger, Senior Research Fellow, Austrian Economics Center
-Carlos Puente Martín, lecturer in European and American organizations and institutions and senior visiting professor at universities and international fora
-Lawson Bader, president and CEO of DonorsTrust and Donors Capital Fund, public charities protecting the intent of donors who value limited government, free enterprise, and personal responsibility
-John Prout, Investor and formerly head of trading for bank dealing rooms in New York, London and Paris
-Neven Vidakovic, CEO of Loti Trading and an adjunct assistant professor at the Faculty of Economics and Business of the University of Maribor in Maribor, Slovenia
-Terry Anker, Chairman of The Anker Consulting Group, Inc.
- John Fund, National Affairs Columnist for and an on-air analyst on the Fox News Channel, *Virtual

Program:

1:00- 1:05- Welcoming Remarks by Melissa O’Sullivan, Deputy Director Danube Institute, Introduction Of John Prout, Program Chair.

SESSION 1 - “IMPORTANT ISSUES FACING THE GLOBAL ECONOMY TODAY”

1:05- 1:20- John Prout, Investor / former Hedge Fund Manager/Investment Banker

“Setting the Stage for our Afternoon Discussions: Where Our Global Economies Stand Today” and Introduction of Speakers.

1:20- 1:40-Dr. Carlos Martín Puente, Economist/Diplomat/Academic

“Decaffeinated Democracy: the Right to Information and Private Property.”

1:40- 2:00-Dr. Neven Vidakovic, CEO Loti Trading /Economist/Educator & Entrepreneur: “Structural Effects of Inflation: Free Market vs. Bureaucracy”

2:00- 3:30 Part 1 of Group Discussion/Debate (with Audience Q & A):

Moderated by John Prout with participants:

-Terry Anker, Chairman, Anker Consulting Group;
-Lawson Bader, CEO of Donors Trust & Donors Capital Fund; 
-John Chisholm, CEO-John Chisholm Ventures;
-John Fund, National Affairs Columnist for National Review Magazine;
-Martin Gundinger, Economist and Senior Research Fellow at AEC;
-Amb. Peter Szabadhegy, former Ambassador for Hungary to the UK and former banker/venture capitalist.

The Slippery Road from Free Markets to State Control

• The consequences of the past 15 years of artificially low-interest rates.
• Crony Capitalism: seesawing between insufficient and excessive regulation.
• Is constant Central Bank intervention/tinkering to achieve a 2% inflation target achievable (or desirable) given the costs?
• Implications of Global Debt at $300 Trillion: Crisis On the Horizon

3:30-4:00 Break

SESSION 2 - “FORECASTS AND SOLUTIONS”

4:00-5:40- Part 2 of Group Discussion/Debate (with Q&A) moderated by John Prout.

• Managing the $300 Trillion Debt Burden: Is there a solution other than Default; Restructure or Inflate?
• Inflation: A decade ago governments’ fears of deflation and their actions led to today’s inflation. What could be the consequences of their attempt to bring inflation down to 2%?
• Banks in Crisis: More regulation; downsize or replace? Are CBDCs and crypto the answer?

• The Outlook for Dedollarization and Deglobalization in a Unipolar vs Multipolar World
• The US; Eurozone; Europe; BRICS and Hungary In Context

5:40-6:00-Closing Remarks, Q & A

Date: 25 April 2023, 1 - 6 p.m.
Venue: Lónyay-Hatvany Villa- 1. Csónak str., 1015 Budapest 
(Entrance: Aranybástya - The Golden Bastion Restaurant)

Participation in the event is free, but registration is required, which can be done by email at events@danubeinstitute.hu or by clicking on the R.S.V.P. button: