ECGI Blog Review Vol. 2: ‘Technology and Governance

Introducing the ECGI Blog Review Vol.2, featuring a collection of blog articles from the ‘Technology and Governance’ theme, which delved into the critical questions and challenges at the intersection of technology and governance. The series was guest edited by Dan Awrey (Cornell Law School and an ECGI )

Read the digital version or download the pdf.

Editors Note:

"The paths of technology, finance, and corporate governance have always been deeply intertwined. The invention of the telegraph, the computer, and the internet have been as critical to the development of modern finance as Wall Street, the venture capital industry, and global capital markets have been to the trajectory and pace of technological innovation. Put differently: technology, finance, and governance have long been entangled in an iterative process of mutual disruption. The process of mutual disruption has yielded enormous benefits: witness the innovative governance models, financing techniques, and products that have emerged from global tech hubs like Silicon Valley, London, Rhine-Main-Neckar, and Shenzhen. Yet this process also entails significant, and often poorly understood, risks.

The question of how to successfully capture these benefits, while effectively managing the potential risks, runs through the many, varied, and extremely thoughtful contributions to the ECGI blog theme on “Technology and Governance”. From digitally autonomous organizations, to algorithmic credit scoring, to smart contracts, these contributions explore the promise and perils of the new technologies that many believe stand poised to revolutionize corporate finance and governance in the decades ahead. If they are right, then finance and governance must – as they always have – rise to meet this challenge and, in so doing, shape future patterns of technological innovation.

As these blog contributions make clear, understanding this process of mutual disruption is both important for society and a core part of the ECGI’s mission."

Dan Awrey is Professor of Law at Cornell Law School and an ECGI research member. His research interests include the regulation of banks, investment funds, derivatives markets, payment systems, and financial market infrastructure. 

The ECGI Blog is part of the Responsible Capitalism initiative