Club Lunch – The Myth of Capitalism: Monopolies and the Death of Competition in the U.S. and China

Capitalism has lifted people from poverty and created widespread wealth for billions of people, most notably in China. Denise Hearn argued that the so-called capitalism that exists today is the antithesis of competitive marketplaces. Monopolies and oligopolies dominate both the U.S. economy and China’s economy. The author presented a case on how industry concentration over the last 40 years in the U.S. has led to: low productivity, low business dynamism, higher consumer prices, record levels of inequality, low wages, and lost localism and diversity. Voters feel that markets are rigged, and populist politicians triumph. What can China learn from this experience? Hearn examined how the U.S. got to this state, and discuss the dangers of concentrated economic and political power.

Denise Hearn is co-author of The Myth of Capitalism: Monopolies and the Death of Competition – named one of the Financial Times’ Best Books of 2018 and endorsed by two Nobel Prize winners. She has presented to over 50,000 people at venues including: the Oxford Union, Bloomberg, and a Canadian Parliamentary Standing Committee. Her work has been featured in: The Washington Post, Quartz, the Financial Times, Business Insider, and Reuters. Ms. Hearn has an MBA from the Oxford Saïd Business School and a BA in International Studies from Baylor University.