Money and Debt: The Public Role of Banks

• Main Author: Stellinga, Bart (auth)
• Other Authors: de Hoog, Josta (auth), van Riel, Arthur (auth), de Vries, Casper (auth)
• Format: Electronic Book Chapter
• Language: English
• Published: Springer Nature 2021
• Series: Research for Policy
• Subjects: Political economy; Macroeconomics; Public administration; Economic Policy; Macroeconomics/Monetary Economics//Financial Economics; Political Economy/Economic Systems; Public Administration; Financial Economics; Political Economy and Economic Systems; Open Access; Dutch Monetary Reform; Financial Regulation; History of Money Creation; Monetary Policy; Monetary Reform; Sovereign Money System; The Bretton Woods Period; The Public Role of Banks; Monetary economics
• Online Access: OAPEN Library: download the publication; OAPEN Library: description of the publication

This Open Access book from the Netherlands Scientific Council for Government Policy explains how money creation and banking works, describes the main problems of the current monetary and financial system and discusses several reform options. This book systematically evaluates proposals for fundamental monetary reform, including ideas to separate money and credit by breaking up banks, introducing a central bank digital currency, and introducing public payment banks. By drawing on these plans, the authors suggest several concrete reforms to the current banking system with the aim to ensure that the monetary system remains stable, contributes to the Dutch economy, fairly distributes benefits, costs and risks, and enjoys public legitimacy. This systematic approach, and the accessible way in which the book is written, allows specialized and non-specialised readers to understand the intricacies of money, banking, monetary reform and financial innovation, far beyond the Dutch context.