Is Business Broken? How to Combat Common Ownership
Apr 10, 2025
Join Fiona Scott Morton, a leading economist from Yale, Glen Weyl, founder of the RadicalxChange Foundation, and Florian Ederer, a market policy expert from BU, as they tackle the challenges of common ownership. They discuss how major investors shape competition, raise prices, and stifle innovation. The trio explores innovative solutions, critiques existing regulations, and emphasizes the need for shareholder voting reforms. They also confront political barriers in financial regulation, aiming for clearer ownership structures to benefit consumers.
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Jack Bogle's Evolving View
- Jack Bogle, pioneer of Vanguard and index fund investing, initially doubted common ownership was a problem.
- Before his death, he became concerned about the issue and its consequences.
Economics Siloes Slow Progress
- Economics is siloed, making it hard to study issues crossing multiple fields like common ownership.
- This has led to slow progress on understanding and solving the problem.
Limit Ownership Stakes Strictly
- Limit institutional ownership to less than 1% in competing firms to reduce anti-competitive effects.
- Funds should hold only one firm per product market to avoid competition softening through common ownership.