Of late, the dollar value of cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin and Ethereum and others, have hit new record highs, in the thousands of dollars per unit. The price escalation has attracted more speculators, which have further boosted the price over the past several...
Ian Madsen
Centerra’s Kumtor Mine Crisis Would Have Been a Taxpayer Problem if Cameco were Still a Crown Corporation
Centerra, a mid-size gold mining company, is engaged in a legal and political dispute with the government of Kyrgyzstan, a former Soviet republic in Central Asia with a chronically unstable and fractious political class and culture. Its main asset, the Kumtor mine,...
The Duel Over KCS Not a Sign of Ottawa Failure, but a Strategy to Exploit Customers’ China Aversion
Recently, a bidding war has erupted between Canada’s two mammoth and historic railways, Canadian National, ‘CN’ and archrival, Canadian Pacific, ‘CP,’ for the U.S. railroad, Kansas City Southern, ‘KCS.’ This is all about KCS’ mid-American location and its extensive...
UAP are Not Alberta’s Governing Party, but Actually Much More Mysterious, Alarming and Intriguing
The staid and venerable television program 60 Minutes aired a segment last Sunday night that focused on a topic that has been examined before, but not with the same widespread receptivity and credibility. It had to do with ‘UAPs’, Unidentified Aerial Phenomena, what...
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Why University?
In this essay, I explain that young people should come to university to be educated, and not to become credentialed; the public should support universities because universities educate young people, not because they produce credentialled workers. Why should a...
A Lamentable Tale of Two Colonies
During the whole of recorded history, the empire has been the most constant and common form of political organization. A basic, self-evident feature of all empire-building has been the successful occupation of the lands of the local, Indigenous inhabitants by outside...
Divesting Hydro-Québec: Realizing Compelling Value vs. Continuing Misplaced Idolatry
Hydro-Québec, (HQ), is the electric power utility for Quebec, Canada’s largest province by area, and is owned entirely by the provincial government. It could theoretically be worth as much as $162B were it divested; or, far less if investors believe that its...
Scrooge or Santa? Central Banks Should Be Neither
As the financial markets around the world erupt and gyrate, dampening the usual festive and hospitable spirit that commonly obtains at this time of year, there have been a number of reasons given. There are some notable geopolitical risks, in the Middle East,...
The Government Insurance ‘Utopia’ You were not Promised
Recently the Insurance Corporation of British Columbia (ICBC) has been experiencing significant losses. These losses have been offset by transfers from its optimal business. Without transfers, the basic business capital would have fallen below the regulatory minimum....
New Brunswick Taxpayers on the Hook for Huge NB Power Debt
NB Power’s debt is a problem for the province of New Brunswick and its taxpayers. As it stands, NB Power’s capital structure is over 90 percent funded by debt. This is a problem for the corporation’s ability to invest and adapt for the future. Unfortunately, it is...
Without Debt There Would Be Little Capital At All: A Valuation of NB Power
Nearly every province in Canada has its dubiously cherished government-owned power utility. Rarely in this country has there been one as hobbled by debt as NB Power, ‘NBP’. The fundamental business is relatively sound and appears to be resilient. However, its capital...
“Private” Liquor Stores Replacing SLGA Stores in Saskatchewan
Private liquor stores are popping up all over Saskatchewan. Almost all of Saskatchewan’s liquor stores have been converted to private liquor stores, except for a few remaining SLGA stores that will soon be turned private. However, these stores are still regulated by...
New Trans-Pacific Trade Agreement is Potentially Bigger, Better Than It First Seems
The reworked Trans-Pacific Partnership trade agreement between Canada and ten other nations, now called the Comprehensive and Progressive Trans-Pacific Partnership, is due to kick in at the end of this year. Even the boosterish federal government that heartily...
No Easy Way to Pay the Ferryman: A Valuation of Marine Atlantic
The Frontier Centre for Public Policy has just released No Easy Way to Pay the Ferryman: A Valuation of Marine Atlantic by Ian Madsen, a senior policy analyst with the Frontier Centre for Public Policy. The paper conducts an in depth valuation of the alternative...
More Debt for the Next Farm Bankruptcy Debacle – A Valuation of Farm Credit Canada
In addition to the various banks, non-bank financial institutions, alternative lending firms, and credit unions that Canadian farmers, food processors and agri-business firms may choose from, there is also a federal government Crown corporation they can borrow from:...