Saved by our incompetence

The jury is still out on why we missed the financial crisis. Some popular reasons include the strong culture of domestic savings, rural demand, YV Reddy's supposed foresight and so on. But there is one cause that is completely overlooked, our own incompetence.

A simple analysis of bike and car accidents should reveal that the cause is often a foolish driver. He was drunk, speeding, trying to cut lanes, racing with another driver etc. What goes unnoticed is that the people enticed into doing these things are competent as well. I mean, do you see cars used by driving schools ever involved in an accident. Yes, the teacher can control them, but considering that you have all the beginners driving, these cars must be the most accident prone. Yet it rarely happens because learners hardly drive faster than 20kmph.

The Americans really pushed the envelope of their financial system. But only because they were thoroughly familiar with its intricacies in the first place. Most of our bankers are still grappling with our financial system, thanks to the public sector legacy. Our capital markets are not well developed and the general public is still skeptical about the term "investment".

In a sense, the US went into the Olympics and made a mess whereas we never qualified. But hey, at least, we are not losers!