The Group of 20 is formed from finance ministers and central bank governors of 20 economies ( plus the European Union)
which represent two-thirds of the world’s population and 80% of the world’s trade. It was established in 1999 in the wake of the 1997
Asian Financial Crisis to bring together major advanced and emerging economies to both stabilise the global financial market and to
achieve sustainable economic growth and development. It is committed to coordinating expansionary macroeconomic policies.
White House, “Declaration of G20”, November 2008. http://georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov/news/releases/2008/11/
20081115-1.html Retrieved 2009-02-27.
Andrew G. Haldane, “Why banks failed the stress test”, 13 February 2009. Basis of a speech given at the Marcus-Evans
Conference on Stress-Testing, 9–10 February 2009. Haldane is Executive Director for financial stability at the Bank of England.
The Golden Decade is described as the period of extraordinary growth and success for the financial system and financial markets
between October 1998 and June 2007 when banks’ share prices increased almost 60% and their balance sheets rose more than threefold.