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A Model of the Gold Standard

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  • Fernández-Villaverde, Jesús
  • Sanches, Daniel

Abstract

The gold standard emerged as the international monetary system by the end of the 19th century. We formally study its properties in a micro-founded model and find that the scarcity of the world gold stock not only results in a suboptimal output of goods that are purchased with money but also subjects the domestic economy of a country to external shocks. The creation of inside money in the form of private credit instruments adds to the money supply, usually resulting in a Pareto improvement, but opens the door to the international transmission of banking crises. These properties of the gold standard can explain the limited adherence by peripheral countries because of the potential risks to their economies. We argue that the gold standard can be sustainable at the core but not at the periphery.

Suggested Citation

  • Fernández-Villaverde, Jesús & Sanches, Daniel, 2022. "A Model of the Gold Standard," CEPR Discussion Papers 17563, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    • Handle: RePEc:cpr:ceprdp:17563
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    2. Alan de Bromhead & Kevin Hjortshøj O'Rourke, 2024. "Should history change the way we think about populism?," Economic History Review, Economic History Society, vol. 77(3), pages 1086-1109, August.
    3. Boliang Lin & Ruixi Lin, 2025. "A parallel monetary system based on the redeemable self-decaying money -- The ultimate hedge and safe haven of private wealth in the rising wave of over issuance of fiat and token money/stablecoin," Papers 2511.00365, arXiv.org.

    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • E42 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Money and Interest Rates - - - Monetary Sytsems; Standards; Regimes; Government and the Monetary System
    • E58 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Monetary Policy, Central Banking, and the Supply of Money and Credit - - - Central Banks and Their Policies
    • G21 - Financial Economics - - Financial Institutions and Services - - - Banks; Other Depository Institutions; Micro Finance Institutions; Mortgages

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