LONDON, Oct. 30, 2009 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Wall Street Journal today announced that The Rt Hon David Cameron, leader of the Conservative Party, and The Rt Hon Alistair Darling, Chancellor of the Exchequer, will take part in the Journal's Future of Finance Initiative, a global conference addressing the most urgent priorities for economic recovery. The summit will be held Dec. 7-8, at the South Lodge Hotel in West Sussex, United Kingdom.
The Journal's Future of Finance Initiative will convene more than 100 financial experts to debate and ultimately agree on the priorities for international financial regulation and coordination. Participants include leading CEOs, financial executives, top fund managers, officials from G-20 nations, and prize-winning economists. The United Kingdom meeting, which builds on the results from the first Future of Finance Initiative held last March in Washington, D.C., is designed to ensure that many perspectives are heard at this critical time, as governments are in the midst of decisions that will redefine the international financial system.
"We are clearly at a turning point in the global financial system," said Patience Wheatcroft, editor-in-chief, Europe, The Wall Street Journal. "Alistair Darling and David Cameron both have critical roles to play in shaping the system of the future, and we are fortunate to be able to get their perspectives at this unique event."
The participants will work both as a group and within four concurrent task force sessions, each facilitated by a top Wall Street Journal editor, to address key financial issues in depth. The results will be published online and in a special Journal Report on Monday, Dec. 14.
Participants in the Journal's upcoming Future of Finance Initiative in the United Kingdom include:
* Damon Buffini, chairman, Permira * The Rt Hon David Cameron, MP, leader of the Conservative Party * The Rt Hon Alistair Darling, MP, chancellor of the Exchequer * Sir Howard Davies, director, London School of Economics and Political Science * Robert Diamond Jr., president, Barclays PLC & chief executive officer, Investment Banking & Investment Management * Richard Gnodde, co-chief executive officer, Goldman Sachs International * Anshu Jain, head of global markets and member of the Management Board, Deutsche Bank * Alessandro Profumo, chief executive officer, UniCredit Group * Emmanuel Roman, co-chief executive officer, GLG Partners * Peter Sands, group chief executive, Standard Chartered Bank * Myron Scholes, chairman, Platinum Grove Asset Management; Nobel Laureate in Economics; Professor of Finance Emeritus, Stanford University * Eraj Shirvani, managing director, Credit Suisse and chairman of the International Swaps and Derivatives Association * George Soros, chairman, Soros Fund Management, LLC * Michael Spencer, chief executive officer, ICAP plc * Roustam Tariko, chairman, Russian Standard * Paul Volcker, chairman, President's Economic Recovery Advisory Board Former Chairman, U.S. Federal Reserve
An international group of editors from The Wall Street Journal will moderate the discussions throughout the two-day meeting, including: Gerard Baker, deputy editor-in-chief; Thorold Barker, editor, Heard on the Street column; Nikhil Deogun, deputy managing editor; Stephen Fidler, Brussels editor; Alan Murray, deputy managing editor and executive editor, online; Robert Thomson, managing editor and editor-in-chief, Dow Jones & Company; David Wessel, economics editor; and Patience Wheatcroft, editor-in-chief, Europe.
A key sponsor of the Journal's second Future of Finance Initiative is NYSE Euronext, which operates the world's largest and most liquid exchange group and offers the most diverse array of financial products and services.
For more information about the Journal's Future of Finance Initiative including additional participants and the program, please go to https://futurefinance.wsj.com.
About The Wall Street Journal
The Wall Street Journal, the flagship publication of Dow Jones & Company is the world's leading business publication. Founded in 1889, The Wall Street Journal has a print and online circulation of more than 2 million, reaching the nation's top business and political leaders, as well as investors across the country. Holding 33 Pulitzer Prizes for outstanding journalism, The Wall Street Journal provides readers with trusted information and knowledge to make better decisions. The Wall Street franchise has more than 700 journalists world-wide, part of the Dow Jones network of nearly 1,800 business and financial news staff. Other publications that are part of The Wall Street Journal franchise, with a global audience of 3.8 million, include The Wall Street Journal Asia and The Wall Street Journal Europe. The Wall Street Journal Online at WSJ.com is the largest paid subscription news site on the Web with 10.9 million users each month. In 2008, the Journal was ranked No. 1 in BtoB's Media Power 50 for the ninth consecutive year. The Wall Street Journal Radio Network services news and information to more than 340 radio stations in the U.S.
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