The Theory of Banking: Basic Legal Principles—The Legal Nature of the Monetary Irregular-Deposit Contract

Very well, ladies and gentlemen, as we embark on the second semester of the course, our goal is to understand why we are facing the present critical situation, which has resulted in a severe financial crisis and a profound economic recession. Everyone, to one extent or another, is suffering, more or less up close, the effects of the crisis. There are now around four million people out of work in Spain and nearly one million families in which all members are unemployed. In other words, we are talking about actual circumstances; I have not made them up, and they are demanding a great deal of effort and sacrifice from many people and causing them very real problems. This is a university economics course. It is our responsibility as university scholars to understand what has happened.