The Sound Money Project was founded in January 2009 to conduct research and promote awareness about monetary stability and financial privacy. The project is comprised of leading academics and practitioners in money, banking, and macroeconomics. It offers regular commentary and in-depth analysis on monetary policy, alternative monetary systems, financial markets regulation, cryptocurrencies, and the history of monetary and macroeconomic thought. For the latest on sound money issues, subscribe to our working paper series and follow along on Twitter or Facebook.
Advisory Board: Steve H. Hanke, Jerry L. Jordan, Lawrence H. White
Director: William J. Luther
Senior Fellows: Nicolás Cachanosky, Gerald P. Dwyer, Joshua R. Hendrickson, Thomas L. Hogan, Gerald P. O’Driscoll, Jr., Alexander W. Salter
Fellows: J.P. Koning
“Provided there is widespread social respect and protection for the institution of private property, we can have both markets and money, and the material bounties they create. But if we fiddle with markets and money, for example by conducting misguided political experiments, we jeopardize the very roots of our economic well-being.” ~ Alexander W. Salter
READ MORE“A lack of concern for fiscal discipline by both the U.S. Treasury Secretary and a call for persistent, near zero rates by the Chairman of the Federal Reserve suggests that the Federal Reserve and the U.S. Treasury will act in concert to make the new inflation target a reality. It is not a question of whether the inflation rate will pass 2 percent, but when.” ~ James L. Caton
READ MORE“Cases like Citbank’s $900 million mispayment and $846,000 bank drafts stuck in financial limbo make for interesting stories. But keep in mind that the participants in these transactions are the accidental victims of a payments system that provides hard finality. What is unseen is the huge amount of trade that the certainty of hard finality facilitates.” ~ J.P. Koning
READ MORE“If it’s serious about a 2% inflation target, the Fed will have to do better than a pep rally. We were promised meaningful change; what we got was the same old song and dance.” ~ Phillip W. Magness & Alexander W. Salter
READ MORE“Money makes possible an incredible amount of interpersonal coordination in the market. Rules of private property and contract, of various kinds, predate money. But widespread market integration and economic growth only result when there is a critical mass of people in a single commercial network linked by money.” ~ Alexander W. Salter
READ MORE“If credible and clearly articulated, an average inflation targeting regime would provide a better anchor for inflation expectations than a period-by-period inflation targeting regime. Alas, the Fed’s new policy strategy has not been clearly articulated, leaving short-run inflation expectations unanchored.” ~ William J. Luther
READ MORE“Recognizing that private investment usually works better than public investment does not mean that public investment is never desirable. But it does put the burden of proof on those who champion public investment projects. Rather than offering faux refutations of the crowding-out argument and citing anecdotal evidence, as Skidelsky does, those in favor of a public investment project should make the case for why it is desirable.” ~ William J. Luther & Nicolás Cachanosky
READ MORE“The Federal Reserve has increased its commitment to offset a fall in the total level of expenditures in response to an economic downturn. Absent a systematic disruption in the structure of international monetary arrangements or another factor that cannot be offset by monetary policy, the FOMC will ensure that downturns are met with accommodation from monetary policy.” ~ James L. Caton
READ MORE“It’s hard to see why AMPL or YAM could ever replace a dollar. While the price of these tokens is relatively benign, their quantity fluctuates wildly. So the total purchasing power of AMPLs (or YAMs) held in one’s wallet is quite volatile despite the purchasing power of a given AMPL (or YAM) being stable. Put plainly, these aren’t dollar substitutes.” ~ J.P. Koning
READ MORE“The crisis period is now behind us. The need for these facilities, if ever there was one, is now past. It’s time to put away the emergency lending tools.” ~ Thomas L. Hogan
READ MORE“If the Fed aims to reduce inequality, it should use policies that are known to be effective. There is little scope for affecting inequality with monetary policy. Reducing banks’ regulatory burden reduces inequality by improving the lives of Americans with the lowest incomes.” ~ Thomas L. Hogan
READ MORE“When it comes to the gold standard, the experts have spent too much time reading their textbooks and not enough time studying actual history. Empirical questions require empirical answers, and no amount of armchair theorizing can settle how gold stacks up to fiat money. On this, Dr. Shelton is right and the commentariat wrong.” ~ Alexander W. Salter
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