An extensive literature in monetary theory has emphasized the role of money as a record-keeping device. Money assumes this role in situations where using credit would be too costly, and some might argue that this role will diminish as the cost of information and thus the cost of credit-based transactions continues to fall. In this article we investigate another use for money, the provision of privacy. That is, a money purchase does not identify the purchaser, whereas a credit purchase does. In a simple trading economy with moral hazard, we compare the efficiency of money and credit, and find that money may be useful even when information is free. Copyright 2005 by the Economics Department Of The University Of Pennsylvania And Osaka University Institute Of Social And Economic Research Association.
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Article provided by Department of Economics, University of Pennsylvania and Osaka University Institute of Social and Economic Research Association in its journal International Economic Review.
Volume (Year): 46 (2005) Issue (Month): 2 (05) Pages: 377-399 Download reference. The following formats are available: HTML,
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Paper
Charles M. Kahn & James McAndrews & William Roberds, 2004.
"Money is privacy,"
Working Paper
2004-18, Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta.
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Charles M. Kahn & James McAndrews & William Roberds, 2000.
"A theory of transactions privacy,"
Working Paper
2000-22, Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta.
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Other versions:
Ping He & Lixin Huang & Randall Wright, 2005.
"Money And Banking In Search Equilibrium,"
International Economic Review,
Department of Economics, University of Pennsylvania and Osaka University Institute of Social and Economic Research Association, vol. 46(2), pages 637-670, 05.
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