The Renaissance is known as the cradle era of the modern world, for both its art and ideas. Less known is that it was also the era when the modern banking system was created. The Medici Bank was the most influential, yet the trouble it attracted from both church and state, over using usury as a business model, is a problem that our societies still face today.

Ross Ashcroft is joined by Tim Parks, author of 'Medici Money,' to delve into the world of 15th-century banking and to explore the parallels between then and now.