The global financial crisis has had many people calling for a return to the Glass-Steagall provisions of the 1930s that kept retail banks distinct from investment banks.

In this issue of Associate! we take a look at how this distinction could be made afresh in order to remedy the problem of 'casino capitalism'. Our theme, Broken Casino, is an imagined town in Rare Albion, from the book of that title. It is the view of many that there is a need to restore the divide between these two types of banking, but it is not always clear that that or how that could happen. In the lead article, a valuable and insightful general introduction to the topic is provided by Christopher Meakin's Fit for what purpose? His specific proposal is especially worth noting. With its piece on a recent Cass Business School seminar on Equity Finance, Sign of our Time gives an oversight into this seemingly obvious, though actually less so, topic. Interestingly, the seminar included private equity, not normally associated with the subject matter. A technical close-up on how differentiated banking is possible in the case of UK law at any rate is the contribution of Toby Baxendale's Three kinds of deposit. His article introduces a third dimension that is important, namely, speculation in money, so-called 'casino banking', with which investment banking ought not to be conflated. It is surely a moot point where the real change can be begin and given paradigmatic effect – economics or banking. The extract from Christopher Houghton Budd's, Yellow and Blue Money, adds a further dimension to this discussion in that it distinguishes between two different economies, not just different banks - the economy of goods on the one hand, inspiration on the other. The Friends' Page includes two items on the theme of revised banking and a report on a new workshop, Accounting for Oneself. With its theme of Two Sides, One Coin, Accounting Corner completes the picture by describing the double aspected nature of accounting.