And for the International Monetary Fund’s next trick: making peace in the currency wars. Besides getting the organisation back into the thick of crisis lending, another of Dominique Strauss-Kahn’s legacies is the latest in a string of IMF attempts to broker a grand deal on rebalancing the world economy.

The case for the Fund to co-ordinate economic co-operation would seem strong. Current account imbalances – the balance of trade in goods, services, investment income and transfer payments – are threatening to widen again, with China’s trade surplus, for example, swelling again after shrinking during the global recession. The Group of 20 leading economies is once more split by accusations of competitive currency devaluation.

But the processes put in place by the IMF and the G20 to create consensus have had conspicuously few successes. In theory, the gains from economic co-operation could be huge: China could float its exchange rate and rebalance its economy, shifting demand from exports to domestic consumption. In return, the US would reduce its fiscal and external deficits. In practice, disagreement and mutual suspicion have prevented serious moves in that direction.