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Currency competition: A partial vindication of Hayek

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  • Martin, Antoine
  • Schreft, Stacey L.

Abstract

This paper establishes the existence of equilibria for environments in which outside money is issued competitively. Such equilibria are typically believed not to exist because of a classic overissue problem: if money is valued in equilibrium, an issuer produces money until its value is driven to zero. By backward induction, money cannot have value in the first place. However, for any given finite amount of money outstanding, a monetary economy typically has two equilibria. In one, money has value; in the other, money is not valued because no one expects it to be valued. This paper takes this latter equilibrium seriously and shows that trigger strategies eliminate the overissue problem if agents have beliefs of the following type: if an issuer produces money beyond some threshold amount, then the issuer?s money has no value. This result is very general, applying to any monetary economy in which equilibria with and without valued money exist if the money supply is finite. The paper also compares the allocation achieved by a monopolist to that achieved with competitive issuance in both a search and an overlapping-generations environment. The results depend on the environment considered, but two general conclusions arise. First, it is ambiguous whether competitive issuers can achieve a more desirable allocation than a monopolist. Second, with competitive issuance, a licensing agency can always improve on pure laissez-faire and achieve the efficient allocation in the long run.
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  • Martin, Antoine & Schreft, Stacey L., 2006. "Currency competition: A partial vindication of Hayek," Journal of Monetary Economics, Elsevier, vol. 53(8), pages 2085-2111, November.
  • Handle: RePEc:eee:moneco:v:53:y:2006:i:8:p:2085-2111
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    2. Daniel Sanches, 2016. "On the Inherent Instability of Private Money," Review of Economic Dynamics, Elsevier for the Society for Economic Dynamics, vol. 20, pages 198-214, April.
    3. Robert Kirkby, 2018. "Cryptocurrencies and Digital Fiat Currencies," Australian Economic Review, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne Institute of Applied Economic and Social Research, vol. 51(4), pages 527-539, December.
    4. Fernández-Villaverde, Jesús & Sanches, Daniel, 2019. "Can currency competition work?," Journal of Monetary Economics, Elsevier, vol. 106(C), pages 1-15.
    5. Daniel Sanches, 2016. "On The Welfare Properties Of Fractional Reserve Banking," International Economic Review, Department of Economics, University of Pennsylvania and Osaka University Institute of Social and Economic Research Association, vol. 57(3), pages 935-954, August.
    6. Daniel R. Sanches, 2013. "Banking crises and the role of bank coalitions," Working Papers 13-28, Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia.
    7. Li, Yiting & Matsui, Akihiko, 2009. "A theory of international currency: Competition and discipline," Journal of the Japanese and International Economies, Elsevier, vol. 23(4), pages 407-426, December.
    8. Berentsen, Aleksander, 2006. "On the private provision of fiat currency," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 50(7), pages 1683-1698, October.
    9. Daniel R. Sanches, 2013. "On the welfare properties of fractional reserve banking," Working Papers 13-32, Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia.
    10. Hull, Isaiah & Sattath, Or, 2021. "Revisiting the Properties of Money," Working Paper Series 406, Sveriges Riksbank (Central Bank of Sweden).
    11. Iwamura, Mitsuru & Kitamura, Yukinobu & Matsumoto, Tsutomu, 2014. "Is Bitcoin the Only Cryptocurrency in the Town? Economics of Cryptocurrency and Friedrich A.Hayek," Discussion Paper Series 602, Institute of Economic Research, Hitotsubashi University.
    12. Daniel Sanches, 2016. "On The Welfare Properties Of Fractional Reserve Banking," International Economic Review, Department of Economics, University of Pennsylvania and Osaka University Institute of Social and Economic Research Association, vol. 57, pages 935-954, August.
    13. Holthausen, Cornelia & Monnet, Cyril, 2003. "Money and payments: a modern perspective," Working Paper Series 245, European Central Bank.

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