Acknowledgments

This book is about the personal relations that facilitate cooperation and experimentation in times of crisis. In the spirit of the argument, I cannot overlook the people and personal relationships without which this project could ever have been completed, even if not in crisis situations (most of the time, at least).

I’m especially thankful to my advisers, Jonathan Kirshner, Peter Katzenstein, Tom Pepinsky, and Eswar Prasad, at Cornell University, where I started this project. Together, they helped me realize and streamline a very nebulous idea. In their own ways, they each kept me on track with an abundance of support and encouragement, while also providing the necessary but healthy skepticism that helped me sharpen my arguments.

In addition to all his advice, time, and conversations, Jonathan understood, even before I did, what I was trying to say, and reminded me to stop and regroup every time I got lost in the details. Most importantly, he encouraged me to be me, especially when I doubted myself and my work. His guidance gave me the confidence to pursue unconventional ideas and challenge the conventional ones. Tom, Peter, and Eswar pushed me to think big and, when necessary, small and precise to clarify my arguments. Their support and guidance helped me frame my work to engage a wider audience. Christopher Way was an invaluable external reader and mentor during my time at Cornell. They all remain a constant source of support, and I continue to learn from all of them.

No historical work can be undertaken without the tireless efforts of the archivists who manage the files and records that scholars consult. I am especially thankful to Hannah Cleal and Margharita Orlando at the Bank of England, as well as Marcia Cavalinhos, Mihaiela Donisa, Lazaros Filis, and Joanne Ruff at the Bank for International Settlements, the numerous archivists at Columbia University's Rare Book and Manuscript Library, for all their assistance, kindness, and patience during my visits to the archives. To whoever has digitized all the records in the Federal Reserve Archival System for Economic Research, thank you. None of this research would have been possible without support from the Cornell Graduate School, the Social Science Research Council, the Einaudi Center Dissertation Proposal Development Fellowship, the Hayek Fund for Scholars, the Adam Smith Fellowship, the Mario Einaudi Center for International Studies, the Carpenter Fellowship, the Sage Fellowship, and the Global Political Economy Project Pre-Doctoral Fellowship at Georgetown University.

Chapter 4 could not have been written without the willingness and enthusiasm of my interviewees. I am especially thankful to Charlie Bean, Benjamin Bernanke, Forrest Capie, Stephen Cecchetti, Piet Clement, Tim Fogarty, Charles Goodhart, Mervyn King, Donald Kohn, Masaaki Shirakawa, Patricia Mosser, Adam Posen, Simon Potter, Duvvuri Subbarao, Jean-Claude Trichet, Ted Truman, Paul Tucker, and David Wessel, as well as the many other central bankers and journalists who remain anonymous, for their time, valuable insights, and willingness to be interviewed or to meet for conversations. I learned an extraordinary amount of technical and historical detail about the subject and the connections they shared that gave me the opportunity to interview policymakers from across the world.

I would not have even considered a PhD were it not for the inspiration and encouragement of former advisers-turned-friends. James Morrison and Sandy Hager have helped me assimilate into the academic world, kept me engaged in their academic communities, and introduced me to so many peers in the field. They are some of my earliest cheerleaders and their influence is reflected throughout my work.

While at Georgetown, I was lucky to find advisers in Kate McNamara and Abe Newman, who, along with Siyao Li and Nicky Bell, shared thoughtful and constructive feedback on key parts of this book. Kate, along with Juliet Johnson and Steve Nelson, spent an extraordinary amount of time engaging carefully and critically with the manuscript. I cannot thank them enough for their advice and guidance. During my time at Wellesley College, Stacie Goddard provided invaluable support and feedback as I worked through my muddled ideas. Mark Blyth has been an unwavering source of encouragement since I arrived at Brown, and his suggestions as I revised the manuscript have strengthened the book immensely.

I’m very grateful to the guidance and developmental editing from Tom Mowle, who helped me find my voice in this book. Liz Acorn was a great teammate to go through the book writing process together. Nina Obermeier has been a steadfast friend and a fellow finance nerd who has provided support, feedback, and encouragement from beginning to end. I also thank Isabella Bellezza, Julie George, Eun A. Jo, Mike Kriner, and Julius Lagodny for their friendship and generosity, for reading and commenting on drafts chapters, and sharing words of encouragement. My Cornell community, Michael Allen, Colin Chia, Debak Das, David de Micheli, Alex Dyzenhaus, Naomi Egel, Lincoln Hines, Nazli Konya, Cameron Mailhot, Pauliina Patana, Lindsey Pruett, Jake Swanson, Whitney Taylor, and Jess Zarkin, provided helpful critiques and suggestions, which helped get this project off the ground.

A countless number of scholars gave up their valuable time to read my work. I presented parts of the manuscript at Brown University, Johns Hopkins SAIS, the Balsillie School of International Affairs at the University of Waterloo, and the London School of Economics, as well as at annual meetings of the International Political Economy Society and the International Studies Association. I thank all participants for their helpful critiques and suggestions. From the large list of scholars who provided helpful suggestions, feedback, support, and guidance through various phases of writing, revision, and the publication process, I will single out a few: Bill Allen, Faisal Ahmed, Sheri Berman, Benjamin Braun, Jeff Colgan, Seb Diessner, Daniel Driscoll, Derek Hall, Nikhil Kalyanpur, Paul MacDonald, Jamie Martin, Matthias Matthijs, Daniel McDowell, Richhild Moessner, Yumi Park, Reid Pauly, David Steinberg, Abigail Vaughn, Kate Weaver, and Will Winecoff. Oksana Levkovych provided excellent research assistance at the Bank of England Archives. Victoria von Stein provided an immense amount of support in arranging a manuscript workshop and taking notes on a whole day of discussion. Betty Qian provided excellent research assistance for key parts of this book. I thank them all for their invaluable and enthusiastic work on this project.

Sections of the introduction and chapter 4 originally appeared in Aditi Sahasrabuddhe, “Central Bankers in Crisis: Interpersonal Trust, Cooperation, and the Creation of the Fed Swap Network during the 2008 Global Financial Crisis,” International Studies Quarterly 68 (2). I thank Oxford University Press for granting me permission to reuse this material.

I am especially thankful to Eric Helleiner and Jackie Teoh, who were immensely supportive in navigating the publication process and the final stages of carrying this book through Cornell University Press. I am indebted to them and to two anonymous reviewers for their critical feedback, generosity, and time in helping me take this over the finish line.

My life outside academia has helped me through this project, right from when this book first began at Cornell, to the final stretch. In particular, I am grateful to Fiona Goldizen, Sara Keen, and Alisha Pinto whose unwavering friendship means more to me than I can express.

Finally, I would not be where I am today without the support of my parents, Anuradha and Atul Sahasrabuddhe, my brother, Kunal, and my sister, Divya. I could not possibly do what I do without the support and opportunities my parents gave me and my siblings. For that, I dedicate this book to them.