New York, NY – On Wednesday, February 27, the Museum of American Finance will launch its 2008 Henry Kaufman Financial History and Practices Lecture/Symposia Series with a talk by Dr. Niall Ferguson on “Financial Evolution: A Great Dying?” The program will be held from 5:30 – 7:00 pm in the Museum’s education center, located at 48 Wall Street. The presentation will be followed by a Q&A session and reception.
Dr. Ferguson holds dual appointments at Harvard and Oxford Universities, and is a Senior Fellow at the Hoover Institution. A prolific writer and commentator, Ferguson asks: Are we on the brink of a great dying - one of the mass extinctions of species that has occurred periodically in the history of life on earth, like the climatic crisis that killed off the dinosaurs?
Taking a long-run view of the development of financial services, Professor Ferguson argues that evolutionary forces are as much at work in the realm of money as they are in the natural world. As the subprime mortgage crisis works its way through the global financial system, the coming months will determine how far, in terms of its economic impact, the current crisis is a true "ice age" as opposed to just a severe winter.
Admission is free for Museum members and costs $15 for non-members. Working members of the press will be admitted free of charge. Reservations are required; for information or reservations contact Lindsay Seeger at 212-908-4110 or lseeger@financialhistory.org.
About the Museum of American Finance
The Museum of American Finance, an affiliate of the Smithsonian Institution, is the nation’s only public museum dedicated to finance, entrepreneurship and the free open market system. With its extensive collection of financial documents and objects, its seminars and educational programming, its publication and oral history program, the Museum portrays the breadth and richness of American financial history, achievement and practices.
The Museum is now open in its new home at 48 Wall Street. Public hours are Monday – Friday, 10 am – 4 pm. Admission is $8 for adults; $5 for students/seniors; kids 6 and under free.