If you were asked where people borrow from for their daily consumption needs, credit cards from mega-banks seem the obvious answer. However, across the developing world where brick-and-mortar banks are often inaccessible, individuals resort to local alternatives: ‘Kiranas’ or small grocery stores. No credit scores. No collateral. No paperwork. Just a shopkeeper’s quick judgment call,…
Over the centuries, innovation has transformed our way of life, giving rise to ideas and technologies that have significantly improved societal wellbeing. At the heart of these breakthroughs are pioneers such as Thomas Edison, inventor of the light bulb; Malvin De Groote, known for discovering a chemical composition for chocolate ice cream; and Nikola Tesla,…
How do we scale impact when the path forward isn’t straightforward? Hosted by the Social Impact Club at London Business School with the support of the Wheeler Institute for Business and Development, the annual summit took place on April 16, 2026 and brought together a diverse community of founders, business practitioners, students, researchers and institutional…
Artificial intelligence, technological disruption, and geopolitical instability are reshaping the policy landscape. In an era defined by overlapping economic and technological transitions, governments face renewed questions about prioritisation: how should states balance immediate social pressures (“butter”) with longer-term strategic and security demands (“guns”)? The Wheeler Institute for Business and Development was delighted to host Philippe…
For decades, the U.S. dollar has served as the undisputed anchor of the global financial system – the primary currency for international trade, global assets, and central bank reserves. But as the world enters an era of increasing fragmentation, is that dominance under threat? At a recent Wheeler Institute event, Kenneth Rogoff, Maurits C. Boas…
The Wheeler Institute had the pleasure of welcoming the former prime minister of Greece and current member of parliament, George A. Papandreou. Leveraging on his experience serving in public office and in diplomacy, Papandreou’s insights were timely given the current state of the world in which many countries seem to be more divided than they…
London Business School was honoured to welcome President of Iceland, Halla Tómasdóttir, for a conversation on what leadership with purpose means today. Drawing on her career spanning both the private and public sectors, she argues that in a world facing a cross-sector and cross-generation trust crisis, leadership can no longer be driven from a single…
Across Europe and Central Asia (ECA), productivity has been running below its potential for over a decade, failing to power consistent economic growth in the region. Despite decades of market transition, reforms, and integration into global value chains, the region’s productivity trajectory flattened after the 2008 global financial crisis. How can ECA economies ignite productivity…
In partnership with the Central Bank of Nigeria and with support from J.P. Morgan, Goldman Sachs, the Wheeler Institute for Business and Development at London Business School welcomed Olayemi Cardoso, Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), for an in-depth conversation with Professor Hélène Rey, Lord Bagri Professor of Economics at LBS. A recording…
We were delighted to welcome Sharan Pasricha, CEO of Ennismore, back to London Business School, for a conversation with Rajesh Chandy, Professor of Marketing, Tony and Maureen Wheeler Chair in Entrepreneurship and Co-Academic Director of the Wheeler Institute at LBS. The event was a collaboration with the Institute of Entrepreneurship and Private Capital at LBS, which…
