GeoEconomics Research & Reports

Our in-depth research informs the decisions of government officials and business executives and helps them navigate an increasingly uncertain macroeconomic and geopolitical environment.

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All in-depth research & reports

Issue Brief

Sep 22, 2025

Expanding Syria’s multilateral development bank engagement

By Basil Kiwan

Estimates of Syria’s post-civil war cost of rebuilding range from $250 billion to $400 billion. To help finance reconstruction and development, Syria’s transitional government should expand its partnerships with international financial institutions (IFIs) and multilateral development banks (MDBs), as these institutions can play a key role in mobilizing global capital.

Economy & Business Financial Sanctions and Economic Coercion

Issue Brief

Sep 12, 2025

Trustworthy digital identities can set the standards for secure benefits provision in the US

By Ananya Kumar

The proliferation of online services necessitates verifiable digital IDs globally. While they can improve convenience and reduce fraud in benefits provision, they raise privacy concerns and surveillance risks. This paper examines US digital identity challenges, analyzes EU and Japan implementations, and provides policy recommendations for responsible digital ID development in the US.

Cybersecurity Digital Currencies

Issue Brief

Jun 6, 2025

How Japanese economic statecraft has shifted from promotion to protection

By Charles Lichfield

Japan is in a geopolitically challenging neighborhood and is witnessing the basic tenets of its foreign policy—from alignment with the United States to fostering a rules-based environment—come under unprecedented stress.

East Asia Economy & Business

Issue Brief

Apr 28, 2025

Modernizing the tools of economic statecraft to meet the challenges of today

By Lesley Chavkin, Eitan Danon, Kimberly Donovan, Andrew Gallucci, and Caroline Hill

As the current administration revisits the functions and mechanics of government, near-term steps can be taken, under existing statutory authorities, to modernize how the United States uses its economic strength to combat national security threats and promote American interests.

Economy & Business Financial Crimes & Illicit Trade
Canada flag waving in Ottawa.

Issue Brief

Mar 27, 2025

Canada needs an economic statecraft strategy to address its vulnerabilities

By Kimberly Donovan, Maia Nikoladze, Lize de Kruijf

To address threats from Russia and China and reduce trade overdependence on the United States, Canada’s federal government will need to consolidate economic power and devise an economic statecraft strategy that will leverage Canada’s economic tools to mitigate economic threats and vulnerabilities.

China Cybersecurity

Issue Brief

Mar 3, 2025

Financing the future: Unlocking private capital for global infrastructure and climate goals

By Amin Mohseni-Cheraghlou, Nisha Narayanan, Hung Tran

MDBs and international financial institutions alone cannot bridge the climate and development financing gaps.

Economy & Business Financial Regulation

Issue Brief

Mar 3, 2025

Toward equitable debt contracts: Preventing de facto seniority-clause escalation in the sovereign lending space

By Lili Vessereau

China's stringent clauses are hindering debt restructuring negotiations for low-income borrowers. Here's how the IMF and World Bank can intervene.

China Economy & Business

Issue Brief

Mar 3, 2025

Fragmentation and the role of the IMF

By Patrick Ryan

Here's how the IMF can adapt to ensure that the international system has an effective insurance mechanism.

Economy & Business Financial Regulation

Issue Brief

Dec 20, 2024

Decoding French economic statecraft

By Charles Lichfield

Understanding how France “does” economic statecraft will be crucial for US and other Western policymakers in the months and years ahead.

Economy & Business Eurozone

Report

Nov 12, 2024

Avoiding entanglement: G20 responses in a Taiwan crisis

By Matthew Mingey, Laura Gormley, and Logan Wright

This report identifies China’s likely goals for interactions with G20 nations under a Taiwan contingency, as well as each case country’s respective economic and policy reactions.

Brazil China