Geopolitics

Carry on Governing Geopolitics

Carry on Governing

The British have a new hobby, which in cultural terms is right up there with conkers, bunting and Bake Off. Scalping prime ministers has become such a national pastime, it could get its own TV show. Working titles: "Don't lose your seat", or "One in, one out". The British have always been

Dan Ilett · 5 min read min read
SPADness: Are Advisors to Blame for Government Cockups? Geopolitics

SPADness: Are Advisors to Blame for Government Cockups?

You have to ask, how can UK governments keep getting it so successfully wrong? With 13 major U-turns under its belt and counting, this government has realised its inexperience is costing it voters. The blame - at least a good portion - has landed on the record number of special advisors

Dan Ilett · 5 min read min read
Greenland, Jobs and Labour Chaos Geopolitics

Greenland, Jobs and Labour Chaos

The World Economic Forum in Davos dominated international attention with a tense backdrop of US-Europe friction. President Trump launched a new Board of Peace initiative aimed at Middle East conflict resolution but did so without major allied support, raising questions about diplomatic

Dan Ilett · 2 min read min read
Can Business Grow in a Budget That Doesn’t Like Business? Geopolitics

Can Business Grow in a Budget That Doesn’t Like Business?

After all the rumours and leaks, the business community listened with its head in hands yesterday braced for what was due to be another pickaxe to its aspiration. The expectation was that Rachel Reeve’s budget would tax air, breathing, hands, moving and looking at things. Dogs and cats

Dan Ilett · 4 min read min read
The Prophet of the Stateless Age: What Ian Angell Saw Coming Geopolitics

The Prophet of the Stateless Age: What Ian Angell Saw Coming

A friend of mine runs a boutique consultancy. Recently he told me he's moving to Dubai from the UK. Not for the zero income tax, he said, but he's fed up of taking scrappy projects and being ghosted while his industry suffers and government looks on. In 2000, Professor Ian Angell published

Dan Ilett · 3 min read min read
From the Great Moderation to the Great Fragmentation Geopolitics

From the Great Moderation to the Great Fragmentation

The Executive Summary dinner at the Goring last week was a brilliant mix of debate and divergence. Who doesn't like a showdown of geopolitics with a good beef wellington. Before getting into the how the world is shaping up. Shannon Mahaffey from Origina talked the group about how Big IT

Dan Ilett · 3 min read min read
Mindset Audits and Geopolitics Geopolitics

Mindset Audits and Geopolitics

I'm hosting an Executive Summary dinner at the Goring Hotel in London tonight on Geopolitics and the impact it's having on operational resilience for CEOs. We have some brilliant minds coming - from former cabinet members to chairs of some of the largest organisations. Where the debate is

Dan Ilett · 2 min read min read
$120k Bitcoin and Crypto Rally as US Regulators Shut Geopolitics

$120k Bitcoin and Crypto Rally as US Regulators Shut

Prices are rising on macro shock, but the real shift is structural. Stablecoins, token rails and regulatory frameworks are all hardening. The firms building inside that window now will run the next market. Everyone else will play catch-up. You should care because crypto is becoming the

Dan Ilett · 1 min read min read
Crypto millionaires, Eurocoins and Tether’s Punchy Landgrab Geopolitics

Crypto millionaires, Eurocoins and Tether’s Punchy Landgrab

The number of crypto millionaires has jumped by around 40% year‑on‑year, reaching 241,700 globally. Nine major European banks - including ING and UniCredit - announced a joint venture to launch a euro‑denominated stablecoin, planning a 2026 rollout. The move signals Europe’s desire to keep

Dan Ilett · 2 min read min read
Crypto’s Regulatory Turn: London Makes its Move Geopolitics

Crypto’s Regulatory Turn: London Makes its Move

This week, UK Chancellor Rachel Reeves and US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent met in London to align crypto regulation, starting with stablecoins. In a move that signals deeper financial integration with the US and a clear pivot away from Brussels, the two sides agreed to explore joint

Dan Ilett · 2 min read min read
Labour: Where's the Growth? Geopolitics

Labour: Where's the Growth?

With two weeks to go until Labour’s annual conference, the fiscal cracks on show are looking more like subsidence. The party wants to talk growth: private investment, green jobs and productivity, but is doing so with a chancellor, Rachel Reeves, who is stiffly defined by fiscal caution,

Dan Ilett · 3 min read min read