Making money : the history and future of society's most important technology / Peet van Biljon and Alexandra Reed Lajoux.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Van Biljon, Peet, author.

Lajoux, Alexandra Reed, author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Money.

Money--Social aspects.

Physical Description:

xvi, 279 pages ; 23 cm

Place of Publication:

Boston : De Gruyter, [2020]

Contents:

Part I Money and Society

Chapter 1 A Great Human Invention: The Rote of Money in Society p. 3

Why We Invented Money and What It Does for Us p. 3

A Money Parable p. 4

Stone Money p. 5

Counting Our Obligations p. 7

Trust p. 11

The Essence of Money p. 13

Inflation and Equity p. 15

The Early History of Money p. 17

Money from Ancient to Medieval Times p. 17

Growing Money p. 19

Fuel for Revolutions p. 20

Features and Bugs of Money p. 21

The Gold Standard p. 22

Money and the Real Economy p. 25

Inflation and Hyperinflation p. 26

Money and Policy p. 28

Our Money Journey Will Continue p. 29

Chapter 2 Why Some People Have So Much Money and Others Have So Little p. 31

How Money Is Earned p. 31

Factor Payments: A Key Concept p. 31

How Changes in Factor Payments Change Society p. 34

A Very Brief History of Economic Thought p. 35

A Quick Tour Through Economic Epochs p. 36

The Agricultural Revolution (10,000 BC) and the Invention of Money p. 36

The Scientific Revolution (1500 AD) p. 39

The First Industrial Revolution (Early Eighteenth to Early Nineteenth Century) p. 39

The Second Industrial Revolution (Late Nineteenth to Early Twentieth Century) p. 40

The Third industrial Revolution (1960s to 1990s) p. 41

The Fourth Industrial Revolution (2000s to present) p. 41

Revolutions Always Have Consequences p. 42

The Industrialization of Agriculture p. 42

The Industrialization of Production p. 43

The Laborer's Wages p. 45

The Labor Theory of Value (LTV) p. 45

The Utility Theory p. 46

The Sociopolitical Context for Making Money p. 49

The Current Distribution of Money in the World p. 51

Larger Pie, More for the Many p. 51

Larger Pie, More for the Few p. 53

Corporations Are Unequal Too p. 56

Today's Face-Off: Computers versus Humans p. 57

The Pain and Gain of Redistribution p. 63

Part II Central Banks and Global Finance

Chapter 3 Fiat Currency and Credit: How Banks and Treasuries Create and Control Money p. 69

Early Central Banks p. 69

Central Banks Founded in the Modern Era p. 73

Credit and the Creation of Money p. 75

Bank Runs p. 77

Toxic Collateral p. 77

Commercial Credit Rating Agencies: Scorekeepers for Bonds and Other Securities p. 79

Consumer Credit: Borrowing Behavior as Invisible "Collateral" p. 80

Non-bank Financial Intermediation p. 82

College Loans: Financial Slavery vs. Financial Freedom p. 82

High-Interest Loans p. 83

Fiat Currency p. 83

Currency and Banknote Design p. 85

Monetary Policy p. 87

Policy Shifts p. 90

Interest Rates Issues p. 90

The Future of Central Banks and Treasuries p. 92

Chapter 4 Global Finance: Markets, Movers, and Motives p. 94

Markets: Stock, Bond, Currency, and Commodities p. 95

Stock Markets p. 96

Bond Markets p. 97

Currency Markets (Foreign Exchange or FX) p. 100

Commodities Markets p. 101

Intermarket Financial Analysis p. 102

Market Movers p. 104

Bank of international Settlements and SWIFT p. 104

National Securities Commissions p. 105

The "Great" G's p. 105

Global "NGOs" (Nongovernmental Organizations) p. 106

Motivations: Market Forces p. 107

Drivers p. 107

Equilibrium and Feedback Loops p. 110

The Invisible Hand p. 112

Six Problems Plaguing Markets p. 113

Problem 1 Possible or Perceived Conspiracies p. 114

Problem 2 Scams and Other Scandals p. 114

Problem 3 Speculation p. 116

Problem 4 Short-termism p. 118

Problem 5 Human Folly p. 118

Problem 6 Automation-Robot Roulette p. 120

Reforming Markets from Within p. 123

Part III Money and Technology

Chapter 5 Fintech: When Money Meets Technology p. 127

Financial innovations We Use Every Day p. 127

Automatic Teller Machines (ATMs) p. 128

Credit Cards p. 129

Debit Cards p. 130

Credit Scoring p. 130

Online Banking p. 131

Mobile Banking p. 132

Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT) Networks p. 133

Online Payments p. 133

The Current Fintech Landscape p. 134

Payments p. 135

Deposits and Lending p. 137

Insurance p. 140

Investment Management p. 141

Equity Crowdfunding p. 142

Market Infrastructure p. 143

The State of Play in Fintech p. 144

What to Look for Next p. 145

Biometric identification p. 145

Fintech Applications of Artificial Intelligence p. 146

Blockchain/Distributed Ledgers p. 147

The Battle for Fintech Supremacy p. 149

Chapter 6 What's New about Cryptocurrencies and What's Not p. 153

A Brief Introduction to Cryptocoins p. 154

The Invention of Bitcoin and Why It Is Like Napster p. 156

The Genesis of Bitcoin p. 156

The Bitcoin Bubble p. 159

Why Is There Always Another Bubble? p. 161

Cryptocoins Today and Tomorrow p. 164

Exchanging Dollars for Cryptocoins p. 165

Cryptocoin Exchanges p. 165

Cryptocoin Transactions p. 166

Sovereign Cryptocoins p. 167

Cryptocoins as an Investment p. 168

Regulation and Taxes p. 170

Fraud, Manipulation, and Other Risks p. 171

Barriers to Success p. 174

Scarcity, Scale, and Speed p. 174

High Energy Consumption p. 175

Low Acceptance p. 177

Volatility p. 178

Regulatory Actions p. 179

Part IV Beyond Money

Chapter 7 How Blockchains Could Change How Business Is Done p. 185

Blockchain: The Next Big Technology We've Been Waiting For? p. 186

The Tech Trends That Got Us Here p. 186

Putting Blockchain to Use p. 190

Understanding Blockchain Operation p. 191

Blockchain Basics p. 191

Bitcoin, the Original Blockchain p. 194

Types of Blockchain p. 195

Smart Contracts: The Problems They Solve and Create p. 196

Introducing Smart Contracts p. 197

Scalable, Secure Computer Architectures p. 199

Industries That Could Be Transformed p. 200

The Blockchain Bandwagon p. 200

Asset Registers p. 201

Banking p. 202

Corporate Structure p. 203

Insurance p. 203

Media p. 204

Stock Trading p. 204

Supply Chains and Logistics p. 205

Industries That Will Be Impacted First p. 205

Challenges That Remain p. 206

Regulatory Roadblocks p. 207

Technical Tangles p. 208

Other Limitations p. 209

Conclusion: Between Promise and Skepticism p. 210

Chapter 8 The Promises and Perils of a Cashless Realm p. 213

The Annoyance of Cash p. 213

Are These the Last Days of Cash? p. 214

The Promise of a Cashless Society p. 217

The Cost of Cash p. 217

Hard to Say Goodbye p. 219

The Perils of a Cashless Society p. 220

Legal Rights p. 221

Equity and Inclusion p. 221

Privacy p. 222

Freedom p. 223

Corporate Power p. 225

Cyber Attacks p. 225

What's in Your Doomsday Wallet? p. 226

What Happens When the Big One Comes? p. 228

A Last Word on Cash p. 230.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

1547417234

9781547417230

OCLC:

1055264105