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Upon Daedalian Wings of Paper Money: Adam Smith and the Crisis of 1772

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  • Hugh Rockoff

Abstract

Adam Smith advocated laissez faire for most sectors of the economy, but he believed that banking and finance required several forms of regulation including usury laws and the prohibition of small-denomination bank notes. Smith's support for banking regulation appears to have been a response to the shocks that hit the Scottish banking system during the time that he was composing the Wealth of Nations. The most important was the Crisis of 1772, which has been described as the first modern banking crisis faced by the Bank of England. It resembles the Crisis of 2008 in a number of striking ways. This paper describes the Crisis of 1772, the other shocks that hit the Scottish banking system, and the evolution of Smith's views on the regulation of banking. It is based on Smith's writings, the secondary sources, and a quantification of the new issues of Scottish bank notes during Smith's era.

Suggested Citation

  • Hugh Rockoff, 2009. "Upon Daedalian Wings of Paper Money: Adam Smith and the Crisis of 1772," NBER Working Papers 15594, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    • Handle: RePEc:nbr:nberwo:15594
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. David Laidler, 1981. "Adam Smith as a Monetary Economist," Canadian Journal of Economics, Canadian Economics Association, vol. 14(2), pages 185-200, May.
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    8. Jadlow, Joseph M, 1977. "Adam Smith on Usury Laws," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 32(4), pages 1195-1200, September.
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    Cited by:

    1. Madarász, Aladár, 2012. "Adósság, pénz és szabadság [Taxation, money and freedom]," Közgazdasági Szemle (Economic Review - monthly of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences), Közgazdasági Szemle Alapítvány (Economic Review Foundation), vol. 0(5), pages 457-507.
    2. Michael D. Bordo & Angela Redish & Hugh Rockoff, 2011. "Why didn't Canada have a banking crisis in 2008 (or in 1930, or 1907, or ...)?," NBER Working Papers 17312, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    3. Sabina Andreea Cazan, 2021. "The financial crisis: a history of the economic schools of thought," Journal of Financial Studies, Institute of Financial Studies, vol. 10(6), pages 48-57, May.
    4. Nissaf Ben Ayed & Gérard Mondello, 2015. "The Adam Smith's Banking System: The sources of the analysis of modern banking governance," Post-Print hal-01251667, HAL.

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    JEL classification:

    • N1 - Economic History - - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics; Industrial Structure; Growth; Fluctuations

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