|
Credit theories of money (also called debt theories of money) are concerned with the relationship between credit and money. Proponents of these theories, such as Alfred Mitchell-Innes, sometimes emphasize that money and credit/debt are the same thing, seen from different points of view.〔As Innes mentions in ''What is money?'' (1913), whenever he uses the word ''credit'' or ''debt'', "the thing spoken of is precisely the same in both cases, the one or the other word being used according as the situation is being looked at from the point of view of the creditor or of the debtor."〕 Proponents assert that the essential nature of money is credit (debt), at least in eras where money is not backed by a commodity such as gold. Two common strands of thought within these theories are the idea that money originated as a unit of account for debt, and the position that money creation involves the simultaneous creation of money and debt. Some proponents of credit theories of money argue that money is best understood as debt even in systems often understood as using commodity money. Others hold that money equates to credit only in a system based on fiat money, where they argue that all forms of money including cash can be considered as forms of credit money. The first formal ''Credit theory of money'' arose in the 19th century. Anthropologist David Graeber has argued that for most of human history, money has been widely understood to represent debt, though he concedes that even prior to the modern era, there have been several periods where rival theories like Metallism have held sway. ==Scholarship== According to Joseph Schumpeter, the first known advocate of a credit theory of money was Plato. Schumpeter describes Metallism as the other of "two fundamental theories of money", saying the first known advocate of metallism was Aristotle.〔Chpt 1 Graeco-Roman Economics , 'History of Economic Analysis'', Joseph Schumpeter , (1954)〕〔 〕 The earliest modern thinker to formulate a credit theory of money was Henry Dunning Macleod, with his work in the 19th century, most especially with his ''The Theory of Credit' (1889). Macleod's work was expanded on by Alfred Mitchell-Innes in his papers ''What is Money?'' (1913) and ''The Credit Theory of Money'' (1914),〔Originally published in ''The Banking Law Journal'', since reprinted in books such as Wray (2004) and made available online by the CES〕 where he argued against the then conventional view of money arising as a means to improve the practice of barter. In this alternative view, commerce and taxation created obligations between parties which were forms of credit and debt. Devices such as tally sticks were used to record these obligations and these then became negotiable instruments which could function as money. As Innes puts it in his 1914 article : Innes goes on to note that a major problem in getting the public to understand the extent to which monetary systems are debt based is the challenge in persuading them that "things are not the way they seem" 〔 〕 A Quantity Theory of Credit was proposed in 1992 by Richard Werner, whereby credit creation is disaggregated into credit for GDP and non-GDP (financial circulation). The approach is tested empirically in a general-to-specific econometric time series model and found to be superior to alternative and traditional theories. Werner found that bank credit creation for GDP transactions Granger-causes nominal GDP growth, while credit creation for financial transactions explains asset prices and banking crises. The 2005 book New Paradigm in Macroeconomics (Palgrave Macmillan) by Richard Werner presents a comprehensive and empirically tested credit theory of money, including the Quantity Theory of Credit, and policy proposals as to how to avoid the 'recurring banking crises' and how to stimulate economies after severe banking crises (making use of Werner's policy concept of ''quantitative easing'', which he proposed in Japan in 1994, and which is defined in true 'credit theory of money' spirit as an expansion in credit creation for GDP transactions. Werner's historical analysis presents a historical overview of credit money, tracing it back to ancient Mesopotamia.〔 〕 In his 2011 book ''Debt: The First 5000 Years'', the anthropologist David Graeber asserted that the best available evidence suggests the original monetary systems were debt based, and that most subsequent systems have been too. Exceptions where the relationship between money and debt was less clear occurred during periods where money has been backed by bullion, as happens with a gold standard. Graeber echoes earlier theorists such as Innes by saying that during these eras population perception was that money derived its value from the precious metals of which the coins were made,〔This is the classic Metallist view.〕 but that even in these periods money is more accurately understood as debt. Graeber states that the three main functions of money are to act as: a medium of exchange; a unit of account; and a store of value. Graeber writes that since Adam Smith's time, economists have tended to emphasise money as a ''medium of exchange''.〔Polanyi goes as far as to say Ricardo "indoctrinated" economists into viewing money just as a ''medium of exchange'' - see chapter 16 of The Great Transformation〕 For Graeber, when money first appeared its primary purpose was to act as a ''unit of account'', to denominate debt. He writes that coins were originally created as tokens which represented a unit of account rather than being an amount of precious metal which could be bartered. Economics commentator Philip Coggan holds that the world's current monetary system became debt based after President Nixon suspended the link between money and gold in 1971. He writes that "Modern money is debt and debt is money". Since the 1971 ''Nixon Shock'', debt creation and the creation of money increasingly took place at once. This simultaneous creation of money and debt occurs as a feature of Fractional reserve banking. After a commercial bank approves a loan, it is able to create the corresponding amount of money, which is then acquired by the borrower along with a similar amount of debt.〔The new debt will generally soon exceed the newly created money due to added interest.〕 Coggan goes on to say that debtors often prefer debt based monetary systems such as Fiat money over commodity based systems like the gold standard, because the former tend to allow much higher volumes of money to circulate in the economy, and tend to be more expansive. This makes their debts easier to repay. Coggan refers to Bryan's 19th century Cross of Gold speech as one of the first great attempts to weaken the link between gold and money; he says the former US presidential candidate was trying to expand the monetary base in the interests of indebted farmers, who at the time were often being forced into bankruptcy. However Coggan also says that the excessive debt which can be built up under a debt based monetary system can end up hurting all sections of society, including debtors.〔 〕 In a 2012 paper, economic theorist Perry Mehrling notes that what is commonly regarded as money can often be viewed as debt. He posits a hierarchy of assets with gold 〔In the Financial sector, gold is often said to be the only financial asset that does not represent someone else's liability to pay.〕 at the top, then currency, then deposits and then securities. The lower down the hierarchy, the easier it is to view the asset as reflecting someone else's debt.〔 〕 A later 2012 paper from Claudio Borio of the BIS made the counter-intuitive case that it is loans that give rise to deposits, rather than the other way round.〔"(The financial cycle and macroeconomics: What have we learnt? )", by Claudio Borio, Bank for International Settlements December 2012〕 In a book published in June 2013, Felix Martin argued that credit based theories of money are correct, citing earlier work by Macleod: "currency ... represents transferable debt, and nothing else". Martin writes that it's difficult for people to grasp the nature of money, because money is such a central part of society, and alludes to the Chinese proverb that "If you want to know what water is like, don't ask the fish."〔Chapter 1, ''Money: The Unauthorised Biography'' , Felix Martin, June 2013, Bodley Head〕〔 〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Credit theory of money」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
|