Rohan Upadhyay – Vanderbilt Business Review

Jan

09

2023

SBF’s Arrest Puts a Question Mark on D.C.’s Relationship with Crypto

All Posts, Economy and Government

By Rohan Upadhyay Photo by Maxim Hopman on Unsplash Sam Bankman-Fried’s arrest, following FTX’s bankruptcy, has disrupted Washington’s relationship with the cryptocurrency industry. Bankman, who pleaded not guilty to charges of fraud, has lost allies in Washington as lobbyists have severed ties. This may affect lawmakers’ treatment of cryptocurrency. This is significant because Bankman was a major lobbyist for cryptocurrencies, so the industry has lost a key figurehead. In the 2022 election cycle, the industry spent $73 million on donations to federal political candidates. Of this, FTX alone spent $72.1 million, of which Sam Bankman-Fried personally spent $39.9 million. Bankman…

Jun

28

2022

By Rohan Upadhyay

The Financial Implications of Divesting

All Posts, Sustainability

By: Rohan Upadhyay On February 16th, Dores Divest filed a legal complaint - alongside students at Stanford, Yale, MIT, and Princeton - with the Tennessee attorney general to compel Vanderbilt to divest from fossil fuel investments. The complaint invoked the Tennessee Uniform Prudent Management of Institutional Funds Act (UPMIFA), which states that nonprofit funds must invest responsibly with regard to the community’s well-being. They argue that Vanderbilt disregards this principle. To learn more about the motivations, arguments and goals of the complaint, I spoke with Miguel Moravec, a co-founder of Dores Divest. I also spoke with Joshua Doh, a student…

Mar

06

2022

By Rohan Upadhyay

Is Fossil Fuel Divestment a Legal Responsibility?

All Posts, Sustainability

By: Rohan Upadhyay Photo by American Public Power Association on Unsplash Dores Divest, alongside the Climate Defense Project, recently filed a legal complaint to Tennessee’s attorney general to compel Vanderbilt’s Board of Trust to divest from fossil fuels. Similar complaints came from students at Princeton, MIT, Stanford and Yale to their respective attorney generals. The complaint argues that: “Under the Tennessee Uniform Prudent Management of Institutional Funds Act, the Board of Trust has a fiduciary duty to invest with… charitable purposes… [which] distinguishes non-profit institutions from other investors. It is problematic, then, that the Board… has invested… in the fossil…

Oct

19

2021

By Rohan Upadhyay

Can the Economy Promote Freedom? Breaking down the Debate at Freer Future Fest

All Posts, Economy and Government

By: Rohan Upadhyay The Freer Future Fest - a libertarian conference in Nashville that was partially planned and run by the Vanderbilt Libertarian organization - hosted a debate on Saturday, October 9th, between political Twitch streamers Vaush and Bastiat. The conversation examined what “freedom” means and the types of freedom that society should prioritize to maximize people’s opportunities to experience fulfilling lives. Furthermore, the two commentators discussed how the institutions and regulations of the American economy promote and inhibit freedom in various ways. They debated how to reorganize our economy to promote greater opportunity. While Vaush argued that “freedom” requires…

Mar

13

2021

By Rohan Upadhyay

ARE “GREEN BANKS” THE SOLUTION TO CLIMATE CHANGE?

All Posts, Sustainability

By: Rohan Upadhyay President Biden plans to fight climate change and create jobs via infrastructure spending. However, to make America green, the economy must go green: corporations and banks must move towards renewables. Some institutions are considering sustainability. Global banks invested $1.9 trillion in renewables during 2016-2018 after the Paris Accords. 5 American banks also pledged to end Arctic drilling investment. Yet, this transition isn't complete. 33 global banks invested $1.9 trillion in fossil-fuels between 2016-2019. US banks invested double in fossil-fuels over renewables during 2016-2018. Furthermore, the UN initiative to encourage renewable investment - Principles of Responsible Investing -…

Jan

20

2021

By Rohan Upadhyay

Why Marijuana Legalization Evades Us

All Posts, Economy and Government

By: Rohan Upadhyay The debate over legalizing marijuana has become a hot-button and commonly debated issue in the past few years since Colorado legalized weed in 2012. Regardless of one’s personal stance, we should acknowledge that representatives in Washington are not having an honest conversation about how best to reduce drug abuse. The simple truth is that the “War on Drugs” is a product of corruption and didn’t come from actually trying to resolve the drug problem. We must address that, since it began in 1971 under President Nixon, the War on Drugs has not significantly reduced drug abuse in…

Dec

25

2020

By Rohan Upadhyay

How COVID-19 Exposed America’s Healthcare System

All Posts, Economy and Government

By: Rohan Upadhyay America can’t catch a break with COVID-19. People stay home to avoid getting sick, so they can’t pay the bills and risk getting evicted. If people can’t stay home, then they’re more at risk of getting infected. And even protesting to change eviction policies puts people at risk of catching COVID-19 as people gather in large groups. On top of that, when people get laid off, they lose their health insurance. Just what you need in a pandemic. Healthcare is tied to Employment — Bad Idea In the US, people mainly get health insurance through their employers.…

Nov

02

2020

By Rohan Upadhyay

4 Steps to Beat Climate Change

All Posts, Sustainability

By: Rohan Upadhyay How to leverage the economy to fight climate change How do we beat climate change in a cost-efficient way? Addressing climate change is ethically correct. But people are concerned that jobs could be lost and the debt could grow from throwing lots of resources at the problem. What’s the answer? Liberals support the Green New Deal — a bold proposal to fight climate change and rebuild US infrastructure (among other things) with $16.3 trillion of government investment over about 10 to 15-years. The proposal means well and has some points about how it will pay for itself.…