IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/jetheo/v172y2017icp26-54.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Counterfeiting, screening and government policy

Author

Listed:
  • Kang, Kee-Youn

Abstract

We construct a search theoretic model of money in which counterfeit money can be produced at a cost, but agents can screen for fake money, also at a cost. Counterfeiting can occur in equilibrium when both costs and the inflation rate are sufficiently low. Optimal monetary policy is the Friedman rule. However, the rationale for the Friedman rule in an economy with circulation of counterfeit money differs from the conventional mechanism that holds in the model when counterfeiting does not occur. We also study optimal anti-counterfeiting policy that determines the counterfeiting cost and the screening cost.

Suggested Citation

  • Kang, Kee-Youn, 2017. "Counterfeiting, screening and government policy," Journal of Economic Theory, Elsevier, vol. 172(C), pages 26-54.
  • Handle: RePEc:eee:jetheo:v:172:y:2017:i:c:p:26-54
    DOI: 10.1016/j.jet.2017.08.002
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0022053117300807
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only

    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.jet.2017.08.002?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Edward J. Green & Warren E. Weber, 1996. "Will the new $100 bill decrease counterfeiting?," Quarterly Review, Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis, vol. 20(Sum), pages 3-10.
    2. Yvan Lengwiler, 1997. "A model of money counterfeits," Journal of Economics, Springer, vol. 65(2), pages 123-132, June.
    3. Elena Quercioli & Lones Smith, 2015. "The Economics of Counterfeiting," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 83(3), pages 1211-1236, May.
    4. Ricardo Lagos & Randall Wright, 2005. "A Unified Framework for Monetary Theory and Policy Analysis," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 113(3), pages 463-484, June.
    5. Aleksander Berentsen & Guillaume Rocheteau, 2004. "Money and Information," The Review of Economic Studies, Review of Economic Studies Ltd, vol. 71(4), pages 915-944.
    6. Cyril Monnet, 2011. "Discussion of “Counterfeiting as Private Money in Mechanism Design”," Journal of Money, Credit and Banking, Blackwell Publishing, vol. 43, pages 637-643, October.
    7. Shao, Enchuan, 2014. "The threat of counterfeiting in competitive search equilibrium," Journal of Economic Dynamics and Control, Elsevier, vol. 47(C), pages 168-185.
    8. Sik Kim, Young, 1996. "Money, barter, and costly information acquisition," Journal of Monetary Economics, Elsevier, vol. 37(1), pages 119-142, February.
    9. Yiting Li & Guillaume Rocheteau & Pierre-Olivier Weill, 2012. "Liquidity and the Threat of Fraudulent Assets," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 120(5), pages 000.
    10. Nosal, Ed & Wallace, Neil, 2007. "A model of (the threat of) counterfeiting," Journal of Monetary Economics, Elsevier, vol. 54(4), pages 994-1001, May.
    11. Ricardo Cavalcanti & Ed Nosal, 2011. "Counterfeiting as Private Money in Mechanism Design," Journal of Money, Credit and Banking, Blackwell Publishing, vol. 43(s2), pages 625-636, October.
    12. Drew Fudenberg & Jean Tirole, 1991. "Game Theory," MIT Press Books, The MIT Press, edition 1, volume 1, number 0262061414, December.
    13. Ricardo Lagos & Guillaume Rocheteau, 2005. "Inflation, Output, And Welfare," International Economic Review, Department of Economics, University of Pennsylvania and Osaka University Institute of Social and Economic Research Association, vol. 46(2), pages 495-522, May.
    14. Sanches, Daniel & Williamson, Stephen, 2010. "Money and credit with limited commitment and theft," Journal of Economic Theory, Elsevier, vol. 145(4), pages 1525-1549, July.
    15. Li, Yiting & Rocheteau, Guillaume, 2011. "On The Threat Of Counterfeiting," Macroeconomic Dynamics, Cambridge University Press, vol. 15(S1), pages 10-41, April.
    16. Stephen D. Williamson, 2002. "Private money and counterfeiting," Economic Quarterly, Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond, issue Sum, pages 37-57.
    17. Ben Fung & Enchuan Shao, 2011. "Modelling the Counterfeiting of Bank Notes: A Literature Review," Bank of Canada Review, Bank of Canada, vol. 2011(Autumn), pages 29-35.
    18. Nosal, Ed & Rocheteau, Guillaume, 2011. "Money, Payments, and Liquidity," MIT Press Books, The MIT Press, edition 1, volume 1, number 0262016281, December.
    19. Guillaume Rocheteau & Randall Wright, 2005. "Money in Search Equilibrium, in Competitive Equilibrium, and in Competitive Search Equilibrium," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 73(1), pages 175-202, January.
    20. Klaus Kultti, 1996. "A monetary economy with counterfeiting," Journal of Economics, Springer, vol. 63(2), pages 175-186, June.
    21. Shao, Enchuan & Fung, Ben S.C., 2016. "Counterfeit quality and verification in a monetary exchange," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 52(PA), pages 13-25.
    22. Monnet, Cyril, 2005. "Counterfeiting and inflation," Working Paper Series 512, European Central Bank.
    23. Ricardo Lagos & Guillaume Rocheteau & Randall Wright, 2017. "Liquidity: A New Monetarist Perspective," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 55(2), pages 371-440, June.
    24. Benjamin Lester & Andrew Postlewaite & Randall Wright, 2012. "Information, Liquidity, Asset Prices, and Monetary Policy," The Review of Economic Studies, Review of Economic Studies Ltd, vol. 79(3), pages 1209-1238.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Kang, Kee-Youn, 2021. "Optimal contract for asset trades: Collateralizing or selling?," Journal of Financial Markets, Elsevier, vol. 56(C).
    2. Charles M. Kahn & Francisco Rivadeneyra & Tsz-Nga Wong, 2018. "Should the Central Bank Issue E-money?," Staff Working Papers 18-58, Bank of Canada.
    3. Jang, Inkee & Kang, Kee-Youn, 2021. "Adverse selection and costly information acquisition in asset markets," Journal of Mathematical Economics, Elsevier, vol. 97(C).
    4. Rocheteau, Guillaume & Wang, Lu, 2023. "Endogenous liquidity and volatility," Journal of Economic Theory, Elsevier, vol. 210(C).

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Shao, Enchuan & Fung, Ben S.C., 2016. "Counterfeit quality and verification in a monetary exchange," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 52(PA), pages 13-25.
    2. Williamson, Stephen & Wright, Randall, 2010. "New Monetarist Economics: Models," Handbook of Monetary Economics, in: Benjamin M. Friedman & Michael Woodford (ed.), Handbook of Monetary Economics, edition 1, volume 3, chapter 2, pages 25-96, Elsevier.
    3. Bajaj, Ayushi, 2018. "Undefeated equilibria of the Shi–Trejos–Wright model under adverse selection," Journal of Economic Theory, Elsevier, vol. 176(C), pages 957-986.
    4. Rocheteau, Guillaume & Wright, Randall & Xiaolin Xiao, Sylvia, 2018. "Open market operations," Journal of Monetary Economics, Elsevier, vol. 98(C), pages 114-128.
    5. Shao, Enchuan, 2014. "The threat of counterfeiting in competitive search equilibrium," Journal of Economic Dynamics and Control, Elsevier, vol. 47(C), pages 168-185.
    6. Venky Venkateswaran & Randall Wright, 2014. "Pledgability and Liquidity: A New Monetarist Model of Financial and Macroeconomic Activity," NBER Macroeconomics Annual, University of Chicago Press, vol. 28(1), pages 227-270.
    7. Charles M. Kahn & Francisco Rivadeneyra & Tsz-Nga Wong, 2018. "Should the Central Bank Issue E-money?," Staff Working Papers 18-58, Bank of Canada.
    8. Stephen D. Williamson & Randall Wright, 2010. "New monetarist economics: methods," Review, Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, vol. 92(May), pages 265-302.
    9. Zachary Bethune & Guillaume Rocheteau & Tsz-Nga Wong & Cathy Zhang, 2022. "Lending Relationships and Optimal Monetary Policy [A Comprehensive Revision of the U.S. Monetary Services (Divisia) Indexes]," The Review of Economic Studies, Review of Economic Studies Ltd, vol. 89(4), pages 1833-1872.
    10. Araujo, Luis & Minetti, Raoul & Murro, Pierluigi, 2021. "Relationship finance, informed liquidity, and monetary policy," Journal of Economic Theory, Elsevier, vol. 193(C).
    11. Branch, William & McGough, Bruce, 2016. "Heterogeneous beliefs and trading inefficiencies," Journal of Economic Theory, Elsevier, vol. 163(C), pages 786-818.
    12. Berentsen, Aleksander & McBride, Michael & Rocheteau, Guillaume, 2017. "Limelight on dark markets: Theory and experimental evidence on liquidity and information," Journal of Economic Dynamics and Control, Elsevier, vol. 75(C), pages 70-90.
    13. Kee-Youn Kang, 2019. "Central Bank purchases of private assets: An evaluation," Review of Economic Dynamics, Elsevier for the Society for Economic Dynamics, vol. 31, pages 326-346, January.
    14. Zhang, Cathy, 2014. "An information-based theory of international currency," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 93(2), pages 286-301.
    15. Kang, Kee-Youn, 2019. "Cryptocurrency, Delivery Lag, and Double Spending History," MPRA Paper 93598, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    16. Benjamin Lester & Andrew Postlewaite & Randall Wright, 2008. "Information, Liquidity and Asset Prices," PIER Working Paper Archive 08-039, Penn Institute for Economic Research, Department of Economics, University of Pennsylvania.
    17. Rocheteau, Guillaume & Wang, Lu, 2023. "Endogenous liquidity and volatility," Journal of Economic Theory, Elsevier, vol. 210(C).
    18. Randall Wright & Vaidyanathan (Venky) Venkateswaran, 2012. "Pledgability and Liquidity," 2012 Meeting Papers 601, Society for Economic Dynamics.
    19. Tao Peng, 2017. "Money And Product Quality Under Asymmetric Information," Economic Inquiry, Western Economic Association International, vol. 55(3), pages 1388-1399, July.
    20. Sébastien Lotz & Françoise Vasselin, 2019. "A New Monetarist Model Of Fiat And E‐Money," Economic Inquiry, Western Economic Association International, vol. 57(1), pages 498-514, January.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    Money; Counterfeiting; Screening; Verification; Search;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D82 - Microeconomics - - Information, Knowledge, and Uncertainty - - - Asymmetric and Private Information; Mechanism Design
    • D83 - Microeconomics - - Information, Knowledge, and Uncertainty - - - Search; Learning; Information and Knowledge; Communication; Belief; Unawareness
    • E40 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Money and Interest Rates - - - General
    • E50 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Monetary Policy, Central Banking, and the Supply of Money and Credit - - - General

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:jetheo:v:172:y:2017:i:c:p:26-54. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/locate/inca/622869 .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.