Gunther Capelle-Blancard, co-recipient of the AFSE prize for the best economics book aimed at students

We address our warmest congratulations to Gunther Capelle-Blancard, professor of economics at Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne and researcher at the Centre d’Économie de la Sorbonne, who on May 15 was awarded the AFSE Prize for the Best Economics Book for Students for his book “La Taxation des transactions financières”, published by Éditions La Découverte.

Publisher’s description:

“The idea of a financial transaction tax (FTT) is both popular and controversial: for some, a wild utopia; for others, a way to rein in the markets. The topic is highly symbolic but also raises many economic, financial, legal, and political concerns.

This book aims to shed light on—and depersonalize—the debate around the FTT. What kinds of transactions should be taxed? At what rate? And to what end(s)? To curb speculation or to generate new tax revenue? Should we settle for a stamp duty on daily equity transfers, like the British stamp duty that has proven effective over several centuries? Or should we take a more ambitious approach by taxing all financial instruments, as the European Commission has thus far unsuccessfully proposed?

In the face of major challenges—chief among them climate change and widening inequalities—states must equip themselves with new tools. A well-designed FTT, far from common misconceptions, could play a crucial role.”