Even with rampant inflation, £250,000 is a lot of money, but it's up for grabs to the economist who can come up with the best way for a country to make an "orderly exit" from the euro.
The man stumping up the cash for this lavish new award, Lord Wolfson of Aspley Guise – otherwise known as Next boss, Simon Wolfson – clearly shares the markets' scepticism that Europe's leaders will come up with a long-term solution to the sovereign debt crisis at this Sunday's summit.
Neil O'Brien, director of the Policy Exchange thinktank, which will administer the Wolfson prize, said: "While there's been a lot of speculation about countries leaving the euro, there has been too little detailed research on the many complex questions this would raise."
Policy Exchange's instincts may be Conservative and eurosceptic but the results should also be of interest to the thousands of protesters in Greece and the teenagers joining lengthening dole queues in Spain and Portugal, where there are many years of austerity ahead.
