At the Yale Program on Financial Stability (YPFS) we preserve, create and share knowledge about financial crises and how regulators and policymakers prevent, diagnose, and combat these rare and unprecedented events. As part of that mission, through this “Lessons Learned Oral History Project,” we are interviewing key participants in the efforts by the U.S. and other governments to stem crises, starting with recent crises, such as the Global Financial Crisis of 2007-09 (GFC), and the economic impacts of the COVID Pandemic.
Featured Interviews
Our interviews augment our document-based research by revealing general observations, valuable insights, and unanticipated “Lessons Learned” that we believe will be helpful to policymakers in the future.
Our interviews recount a multitude of perspectives and also provides a human dimension to these rare and extraordinary events. These are the stories of the decisionmakers, who, as the U.S. housing market crashed and the exposure of the inherent weaknesses in the financial system sent markets into a freefall, were tasked with crafting the emergency response not knowing how, or even if, they could contain the damage and restore stability. We hear from the deputies, the lieutenants, and the analysts who worked through the night shepherding possibilities and pouring over numbers. They are men and women who answered their government’s call to service, and put their expertise at its disposal, leaving jobs, families and vacations behind.
The practical revelations contained in these interviews combine with our case studies, and other research, to create a multi-dimensional record and powerful resource for crisis-fighting. You can access the interview transcripts and summaries below.
Browse our collection of Lessons Learned Materials organized by the institution served during the Global Financial Crisis:
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Federal Reserve System
- Donald Kohn, Vice Chairman, Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System
- Jack Gutt, VP, Head of Media Relations and Public Affairs, Federal Reserve Bank of New York
- Alejandro Latorre, Assistant Vice President, Federal Reserve Bank of New York
- Lorie Logan, Director of Treasury Markets, Open Market Trading Desk, Federal Reserve Bank of New York
- Paul A. Volcker, Chair of the Federal Reserve System
- Sarah Dahlgren, Executive Vice President and head of Financial Institution Supervision Group (FISG), Federal Reserve Bank of New York
- Scott Alvarez, General Counsel, Federal Reserve Board of Governors
- Thomas Baxter, General Counsel, Federal Reserve Bank of New York
- Zachary Taylor, Vice President - Head of Maiden Lane and TALF Portfolios, Federal Reserve Bank of New York
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Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission
- Chris Seefer, Director of Investigations, Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission
- Gary Cohen, General Counsel, Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission
- Greg Feldberg, Director of Research, Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission
- Phil Angelides, Chair, Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission
- Ronald Borzekowski, Deputy Director of Research, Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission
- Wendy Edelberg, Executive Director, Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission
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United States Department of the Treasury
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The White House
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Federal Housing Finance Agency
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Other Organizations
We publish our Lessons Learned summaries in our online journal, the Journal of Financial Crises on an ongoing basis. This allows us to share the essence of the interview with the public sooner, even though the interview transcript may be embargoed for a period. You may view our published Lessons Learned summaries in our Journal of Financial Crises , or download the list of published Lesson Learned summaries marked with descriptive keywords .
Additionally, browse our full collection of Lessons Learned Materials and other materials related to crises throughout history with expanded search capability in the YPFS Resource library.
Lastly, find answers to frequently asked questions regarding the Lessons Learned Oral History Project here.