Money Creation and the Shadow Banking System∗
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Money Creation in the Modern Economy
14 Quarterly Bulletin 2014 Q1 Money creation in the modern economy By Michael McLeay, Amar Radia and Ryland Thomas of the Bank’s Monetary Analysis Directorate.(1) This article explains how the majority of money in the modern economy is created by commercial banks making loans. Money creation in practice differs from some popular misconceptions — banks do not act simply as intermediaries, lending out deposits that savers place with them, and nor do they ‘multiply up’ central bank money to create new loans and deposits. The amount of money created in the economy ultimately depends on the monetary policy of the central bank. In normal times, this is carried out by setting interest rates. The central bank can also affect the amount of money directly through purchasing assets or ‘quantitative easing’. Overview In the modern economy, most money takes the form of bank low and stable inflation. In normal times, the Bank of deposits. But how those bank deposits are created is often England implements monetary policy by setting the interest misunderstood: the principal way is through commercial rate on central bank reserves. This then influences a range of banks making loans. Whenever a bank makes a loan, it interest rates in the economy, including those on bank loans. simultaneously creates a matching deposit in the borrower’s bank account, thereby creating new money. In exceptional circumstances, when interest rates are at their effective lower bound, money creation and spending in the The reality of how money is created today differs from the economy may still be too low to be consistent with the description found in some economics textbooks: central bank’s monetary policy objectives. -
A Primer on Modern Monetary Theory
2021 A Primer on Modern Monetary Theory Steven Globerman fraserinstitute.org Contents Executive Summary / i 1. Introducing Modern Monetary Theory / 1 2. Implementing MMT / 4 3. Has Canada Adopted MMT? / 10 4. Proposed Economic and Social Justifications for MMT / 17 5. MMT and Inflation / 23 Concluding Comments / 27 References / 29 About the author / 33 Acknowledgments / 33 Publishing information / 34 Supporting the Fraser Institute / 35 Purpose, funding, and independence / 35 About the Fraser Institute / 36 Editorial Advisory Board / 37 fraserinstitute.org fraserinstitute.org Executive Summary Modern Monetary Theory (MMT) is a policy model for funding govern- ment spending. While MMT is not new, it has recently received wide- spread attention, particularly as government spending has increased dramatically in response to the ongoing COVID-19 crisis and concerns grow about how to pay for this increased spending. The essential message of MMT is that there is no financial constraint on government spending as long as a country is a sovereign issuer of cur- rency and does not tie the value of its currency to another currency. Both Canada and the US are examples of countries that are sovereign issuers of currency. In principle, being a sovereign issuer of currency endows the government with the ability to borrow money from the country’s cen- tral bank. The central bank can effectively credit the government’s bank account at the central bank for an unlimited amount of money without either charging the government interest or, indeed, demanding repayment of the government bonds the central bank has acquired. In 2020, the cen- tral banks in both Canada and the US bought a disproportionately large share of government bonds compared to previous years, which has led some observers to argue that the governments of Canada and the United States are practicing MMT. -
86-2 17-37.Pdf
Opinions expressedil'lthe/ nomic Review do not necessarily reflect the vie management of the Federal Reserve BankofSan Francisco, or of the Board of Governors the Feder~1 Reserve System. The FedetaIReserve Bank ofSari Fraricisco's Economic Review is published quarterly by the Bank's Research and Public Information Department under the supervision of John L. Scadding, SeniorVice Presidentand Director of Research. The publication is edited by Gregory 1. Tong, with the assistance of Karen Rusk (editorial) and William Rosenthal (graphics). For free <copies ofthis and otherFederal Reserve. publications, write or phone the Public InfofIllation Department, Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco, P.O. Box 7702, San Francisco, California 94120. Phone (415) 974-3234. 2 Ramon Moreno· The traditional critique of the "real bills" doctrine argues that the price level may be unstable in a monetary regime without a central bank and a market-determined money supply. Hong Kong's experience sug gests this problem may not arise in a small open economy. In our century, it is generally assumed that mone proposed that the money supply and inflation could tary control exerted by central banks is necessary to successfully be controlled by the market, without prevent excessive money creation and to achieve central bank control ofthe monetary base, as long as price stability. More recently, in the 1970s, this banks limited their credit to "satisfy the needs of assumption is evident in policymakers' concern that trade". financial innovations have eroded monetary con The real bills doctrine was severely criticized on trols. In particular, the proliferation of market the beliefthat it could lead to instability in the price created substitutes for money not directly under the level. -
Modern Monetary Theory: Cautionary Tales from Latin America
Modern Monetary Theory: Cautionary Tales from Latin America Sebastian Edwards* Economics Working Paper 19106 HOOVER INSTITUTION 434 GALVEZ MALL STANFORD UNIVERSITY STANFORD, CA 94305-6010 April 25, 2019 According to Modern Monetary Theory (MMT) it is possible to use expansive monetary policy – money creation by the central bank (i.e. the Federal Reserve) – to finance large fiscal deficits that will ensure full employment and good jobs for everyone, through a “jobs guarantee” program. In this paper I analyze some of Latin America’s historical episodes with MMT-type policies (Chile, Peru. Argentina, and Venezuela). The analysis uses the framework developed by Dornbusch and Edwards (1990, 1991) for studying macroeconomic populism. The four experiments studied in this paper ended up badly, with runaway inflation, huge currency devaluations, and precipitous real wage declines. These experiences offer a cautionary tale for MMT enthusiasts.† JEL Nos: E12, E42, E61, F31 Keywords: Modern Monetary Theory, central bank, inflation, Latin America, hyperinflation The Hoover Institution Economics Working Paper Series allows authors to distribute research for discussion and comment among other researchers. Working papers reflect the views of the author and not the views of the Hoover Institution. * Henry Ford II Distinguished Professor, Anderson Graduate School of Management, UCLA † I have benefited from discussions with Ed Leamer, José De Gregorio, Scott Sumner, and Alejandra Cox. I thank Doug Irwin and John Taylor for their support. 1 1. Introduction During the last few years an apparently new and revolutionary idea has emerged in economic policy circles in the United States: Modern Monetary Theory (MMT). The central tenet of this view is that it is possible to use expansive monetary policy – money creation by the central bank (i.e. -
Modern Monetary Theory: a Marxist Critique
Class, Race and Corporate Power Volume 7 Issue 1 Article 1 2019 Modern Monetary Theory: A Marxist Critique Michael Roberts [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.fiu.edu/classracecorporatepower Part of the Economics Commons Recommended Citation Roberts, Michael (2019) "Modern Monetary Theory: A Marxist Critique," Class, Race and Corporate Power: Vol. 7 : Iss. 1 , Article 1. DOI: 10.25148/CRCP.7.1.008316 Available at: https://digitalcommons.fiu.edu/classracecorporatepower/vol7/iss1/1 This work is brought to you for free and open access by the College of Arts, Sciences & Education at FIU Digital Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in Class, Race and Corporate Power by an authorized administrator of FIU Digital Commons. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Modern Monetary Theory: A Marxist Critique Abstract Compiled from a series of blog posts which can be found at "The Next Recession." Modern monetary theory (MMT) has become flavor of the time among many leftist economic views in recent years. MMT has some traction in the left as it appears to offer theoretical support for policies of fiscal spending funded yb central bank money and running up budget deficits and public debt without earf of crises – and thus backing policies of government spending on infrastructure projects, job creation and industry in direct contrast to neoliberal mainstream policies of austerity and minimal government intervention. Here I will offer my view on the worth of MMT and its policy implications for the labor movement. First, I’ll try and give broad outline to bring out the similarities and difference with Marx’s monetary theory. -
How Money Is Created by the Central Bank and the Banking System Zürcher Volkswirtschaftliche Gesellschaft
Speech Embargo 16 January 2018, 6.00 pm How money is created by the central bank and the banking system Zürcher Volkswirtschaftliche Gesellschaft Thomas J. Jordan Chairman of the Governing Board∗ Swiss National Bank Zurich, 16 January 2018 © Swiss National Bank, Zurich, 2018 (speech given in German) ∗ The speaker would like to thank Samuel Reynard and Mathias Zurlinden for their support in the preparation of this speech. He also thanks Simone Auer, Petra Gerlach, Carlos Lenz and Alexander Perruchoud, as well as SNB Language Services. Page 1/12 Ladies and Gentlemen It is a great pleasure for me to be your guest here tonight. The subject of my speech is the creation of money in our economy. Since money creation in our financial system is closely linked to the granting of loans by banks, I am also going to talk about lending. I shall, moreover, address the issues of sovereign money and access to digital central bank money, insofar as they relate to our main topic. We are all aware of how profoundly the economic and monetary developments of the last ten years have been shaped by the global financial and economic crisis. Central banks responded swiftly and resolutely to the crisis, reducing interest rates and pumping large amounts of liquidity into the banking system. Once interest rates were down to almost zero, central banks were forced to adopt unconventional measures. Against the backdrop of a dramatic appreciation of the Swiss franc, the Swiss National Bank resorted mainly to interventions in the foreign exchange market, supplemented for a while by a minimum exchange rate for the Swiss franc against the euro. -
Seigniorage Is Profit from Money Creation, a Way for Governments To
Copyrighted Material seigniorage money system, seigniorage revenue is given by the product of the inflation rate and the inflation tax base. This inflation tax base reflects the purchasing power of the public’s money holdings and is the level of real money balances (nominal money holdings divided by the price level). Undertaking more rapid monetary expansion causes the inflation rate to rise, but the revenue effects are partially offset as indi- viduals attempt to quickly spend the extra money before it depreciates further. If people spend money faster thanitis beingprinted, therateof price increase comes to exceed the rate of money issuance. Hyperinflation Agovernmentthatisunableto fund its expenditures through conventional taxes or bond sales may become dependent on seigniorage revenues to maintain its existence. Attempts to raise seigniorage revenues are, however, not only infla- tionary but eventually self-defeating. Under cir- cumstances where the decline in real money balances seigniorage becomes proportionately larger than the rise in the Seigniorage is profit from money creation, a way for inflation rate, the inflationary policy actually back- governments to generate revenue without levying fires and lowers seigniorage revenue. The economist conventional taxes. In the days of commodity Phillip Cagan’s classic analysis of hyperinflations, money, seigniorage revenue was the difference be- with inflation rates exceeding 50 percent per month, tween the face value of the minted coins and the suggested instances where the process had, in fact, actual market value of the precious metal they con- been pushed beyond the revenue-maximizing point. tained. When this markup was insufficient for the It is possible that lags in the adjustment of inflation government’s revenue needs, the authorities might expectations may actually have allowed continued substitute less valuable base metal for some of the seigniorage gains, however, and subsequent analysis precious metal that was supposed to be in the coins. -
Money Creation
Money creation • Who does make money and who is making money out of it? You remember these guys? 2 Monetary misconceptions • Money doesn’t make you happy. Or does it? • Money is the ‘mud of the earth’ and it is the root of all evil • Pecunia non olet……….. • A world without money would be a better world. Which is true.. • …….if you are fond of extreme poverty • …….if you dislike economic freedom • …….or both • Money is an essential precondition for economic freedom in an advanced society 3 Content: above all a lot of questions! • What is money? (wrap up) • Who creates money and why? • Is the production of money very profitable? • What kind of reform is possible, if necessary? Some questions to start with • All money is created by the central bank (Yes/No) • Some money is created by commercial banks (Yes/No) • Allmost all money is created by commercial banks (Yes/No) • The government can create money ‘for free’ (Yes/No) • Commercial banks can create money at will (Yes/No) • Commercial banks create unlimited amounts of money (Yes/No) • Commercial banks generate seigniorage income (Yes/No) • The ‘money creation privilege’ is highly profitable (Yes/No) • You can create and destroy money yourself (Yes/No) Today’s situation • Governments/central banks create money: • Coins • Banknotes • Bank reserves • Sometimes: bank deposits (in case of monetary financing) • Commercial banks create bank deposits • Today, this is the lion’s share of the money supply 6 The Dutch money supply (source: DNB, based on ECB-data, Oct. 2017) Commercials banks Central bank and governments 7 Position 1: governments should decide on the money supply • Do you agree? • Why? • Who created money in the past? • During the early coining of gold and silver, private parties decided on the amount of coins in circulation! • Question: why did governments monopolize money creation? 8 Sound money? 9 Sound money! 10 Is money creation still profitable today? Yes it is. -
The Monetary and Fiscal Nexus of Neo-Chartalism: a Friendly Critique
JOURNAL OF ECONOMIC ISSUES Vol. XLVII No. 1 March 2013 DOI 10.2753/JEI0021-3624470101 The Monetary and Fiscal Nexus of Neo-Chartalism: A Friendly Critique Marc Lavoie Abstract: A number of post-Keynesian authors, called the neo-chartalists, have argued that the government does not face a budget constraint similar to that of households and that government with sovereign currencies run no risk of default, even with high debt-to-GDP ratio. This stands in contrast to countries in the eurozone, where the central bank does not normally purchase sovereign debt. While these claims now seem to be accepted by some economists, neo-chartalists have also made a number of controversial claims, including that the government spends simply by crediting a private-sector-bank account at the central bank; that the government does need to borrow to deficit-spend; and that taxes do not finance government expenditures. This paper shows that these surprising statements do have some logic, once one assumes the consolidation of the government sector and the central bank into a unique entity, the state. The paper further argues, however, that these paradoxical claims end up being counter-productive since consolidation is counter-factual. Keywords: central bank, clearing and settlement system, eurozone, neo-chartalism JEL Classification Codes: B5, E5, E63 The global financial crisis has exposed the weaknesses of mainstream economics and it has given a boost to heterodox theories, in particular, Keynesian theories. The mainstream view about the irrelevance of fiscal activism has been strongly criticized by the active use of fiscal policy in the midst of the global financial crisis. -
From the Great Depression to the Great Recession
Money and Velocity During Financial Crises: From the Great Depression to the Great Recession Richard G. Anderson* Senior Research Fellow, School of Business and Entrepreneurship Lindenwood University, St Charles, Missouri, [email protected] Visiting Scholar. Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, St. Louis, MO Michael Bordo Rutgers University National Bureau of Economic Research Hoover Institution, Stanford University [email protected] John V. Duca* Associate Director of Research and Vice President, Research Department, Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, P.O. Box 655906, Dallas, TX 75265, (214) 922-5154, [email protected] and Adjunct Professor, Southern Methodist University, Dallas, TX December 2014 Abstract This study models the velocity (V2) of broad money (M2) since 1929, covering swings in money [liquidity] demand from changes in uncertainty and risk premia spanning the two major financial crises of the last century: the Great Depression and Great Recession. V2 is notably affected by risk premia, financial innovation, and major banking regulations. Findings suggest that M2 provides guidance during crises and their unwinding, and that the Fed faces the challenge of not only preventing excess reserves from fueling a surge in M2, but also countering a fall in the demand for money as risk premia return to normal. JEL codes: E410, E500, G11 Key words: money demand, financial crises, monetary policy, liquidity, financial innovation *We thank J.B. Cooke and Elizabeth Organ for excellent research assistance. This paper reflects our intellectual debt to many monetary economists, especially Milton Friedman, Stephen Goldfeld, Richard Porter, Anna Schwartz, and James Tobin. The views expressed are those of the authors and are not necessarily those of the Federal Reserve Banks of Dallas and St. -
Explain How the Federal Reserve and the Banking System Create Money (I.E., the Supply of Money) Explain the Factors That Affect the Demand for Money.”
Macroeconomics Topic 6: “Explain how the Federal Reserve and the banking system create money (i.e., the supply of money) Explain the factors that affect the demand for money.” Reference: Gregory Mankiw’s Principles of Macroeconomics, 2nd edition, Chapter 15. The Banking System and the Money Supply The Federal Reserve System, also known simply as the Fed, is the central bank of the United State. The Fed has several important functions such as, supplying the economy with currency, holding deposits of banks, lending money to banks, regulating the money supply and supervising the banking system. Most modern economies are based on a fractional-reserve banking system. Fractional reserve banking is designed to assure that banks have enough liquid assets (reserves) on hand to satisfy the normal withdrawals made from checking account deposits. Actual Bank Reserves = Bank deposits held at the Fed. + Bank Vault Cash. Both of these assets are readily available to satisfy customer withdrawals or transfer to other banks as customers write checks. The Fed. establishes a Required Reserve Ratio which is the percentage of checkable account deposits that the banks are required to hold as reserves. Thus the Minimum required reserves = Required Reserve Ratio X Checkable deposits. Money Creation with Fractional-Reserve Banking The money supply is made up of the currency in circulation outside of banks, and the level of checkable deposits in the banking system. To see how banks create money, lets assume we have an economy without a banking system and this economy has $1000 in currency, so the total money supply is $1000. Now suppose someone opens a bank called First Local Bank (FLB) and people in this economy deposit all the money they have at FLB. -
Modern Monetary Circuit Theory, Stability of Interconnected Banking Network, and Balance Sheet Optimization for Individual Banks
2nd Reading June 29, 2016 14:31 WSPC/S0219-0249 104-IJTAF SPI-J071 1650034 International Journal of Theoretical and Applied Finance Vol. 19 (2016) 1650034 (57 pages) c World Scientific Publishing Company DOI: 10.1142/S0219024916500345 MODERN MONETARY CIRCUIT THEORY, STABILITY OF INTERCONNECTED BANKING NETWORK, AND BALANCE SHEET OPTIMIZATION FOR INDIVIDUAL BANKS ALEXANDER LIPTON Connection Science Fellow, MIT Connection Science Media Lab, Massachusetts Institute of Technology 77, Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA [email protected] Received 2 November 2015 Revised 29 April 2016 Published 1 July 2016 A modern version of monetary circuit theory with a particular emphasis on stochastic underpinning mechanisms is developed. It is explained how money is created by the banking system as a whole and by individual banks. The role of central banks as system stabilizers and liquidity providers is elucidated. It is shown how in the process of money creation banks become naturally interconnected. A novel extended structural default model describing the stability of the Interconnected banking network is proposed. The purpose of bank capital and liquidity is explained. Multi-period constrained optimization problem for bank balance sheet is formulated and solved in a simple case. Both theoretical and practical aspects are covered. Keywords: Modern monetary circuit; Keen equations; credit creation banking; fractional by WSPC on 07/18/16. For personal use only. reserve banking; financial inter mediation banking; interconnected banking network; bal- ance sheet optimization. Int. J. Theor. Appl. Finan. Downloaded from www.worldscientific.com Balkan: Are you a religious man, Corso? I mean, do you believe in the supernatural? Corso: I believe in my percentage.