Corporate Defaults are Spiraling Out of Control as Tariffs & Energy Crisis Hits | Danielle DiMartino Booth

Interview recorded - 30th of March, 2026On this episode of the WTFinance podcast I had the pleasure of welcoming back Danielle DiMartino Booth. Danielle is the CEO & Chief Strategist for QI Research. She is the author of Fed Up and a global thought leader in monetary policy, economics and finance with 9 years experience at the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas.During our conversation we spoke about the current issues in the economy, energy crisis, how businesses can't catch a break with tariffs, energy costs and higher rates, FED reaction, liquidity shift, Private Credit and impact on markets. I hope you enjoy!0:00 - Introduction2:46 - Overview of economy4:49 - Comparing to prior energy crisis?6:29 - Where is the leverage?7:15 - Companies struggling8:56 - Unemployment11:26 - FED reaction14:53- What should FED do?18:13 - Kevin Warsh nomination19:26 - Liquidity shift22:15 - Private Credit Concerns25:20 - Impact on markets27:06 - One message to takeaway?DiMartino Booth set out to launch a #ResearchRevolution, redefining how market intelligence is conceived and delivered to guide portfolio managers and promote financial literacy. To build QI, she brought together a core team of investing veterans to analyze the trends and provide critical analysis on what is driving the markets – both in the United States and globally.Since their inception in 2015, commentary and data from DiMartino Booth’s The Daily Feather and The Weekly Quill have appeared in other financial sources such as Bloomberg, CNBC, Fox Business, Institutional Investor, Yahoo Finance, The Wall Street Journal, MarketWatch, Seeking Alpha, TD Ameritrade, TheStreet.com, and more.A global thought leader in monetary policy, economics, and finance, DiMartino Booth founded QI Research in 2015. She is the author of FED UP: An Insider’s Take on Why the Federal Reserve is Bad for America (Portfolio, Feb 2017), a business speaker, and a commentator frequently featured on CNBC, Bloomberg, Fox News, Fox Business News, BNN Bloomberg, Yahoo Finance and other major media outlets.Prior to QI Research, DiMartino Booth spent nine years at the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas. She served as Advisor to President Richard W. Fisher throughout the financial crisis until his retirement in March 2015. Her work at the Fed focused on financial stability and the efficacy of unconventional monetary policy.DiMartino Booth began her career in New York at Credit Suisse and Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette where she worked in the fixed-income, public equity, and private equity markets. DiMartino Booth earned her BBA as a College of Business Scholar at the University of Texas at San Antonio. She holds an MBA in Finance and International Business from the University of Texas at Austin and an MS in Journalism from Columbia University.Danielle DiMartino Booth - Website - https://quillintelligence.com/Twitter - https://twitter.com/DiMartinoBoothYouTube - @DanielleDiMartinoBoothQI WTFinance -Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/67rpmjG92PNBW0doLyPvfniTunes -https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/wtfinance/id1554934665?uo=4LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/anthony-fatseas-761066103/Twitter - https://twitter.com/AnthonyFatseas