Hyun Song Shin

Hyun Song Shin serves as Economic Adviser and Head of Research at the BIS. His research has been enormously influential on how policymakers and academics think about global financial system vulnerabilities. Key contributions include the "leverage spiral" model, which explains how de-leveraging by financial intermediaries can amplify market declines — with financial institutions forced to sell assets as losses reduce their capital ratios, driving down prices further. His work on global dollar funding cycles demonstrates how fluctuations in the dollar affect global credit conditions through the offshore dollar funding market. His research on banking system interconnectedness and systemic risk has been foundational for Basel regulatory discussions. Shin's empirical measurement of the global banking sector's consolidated cross-border claims, published through the BIS banking statistics, provides regulators worldwide with the most comprehensive picture of international credit exposures.