What is money’s role in the development of modern societies and their ecology, insights with Joseph Huber

What is the role of money in the development of modern societies and their ecology, insights with Joseph Huber

What is your background briefly?

I am a professor of economic sociology, specialising in the role of money for the development of modern societies and their ecology.

Does it seem like a logical background to what you do now?

Sure. Ten years ago I was a founder of the NGO Monetative in Berlin. We are now one of 25 member organisations in the International Movement for Monetary Reform.

Our overall objective is to maintain, or rather regain, sovereign control of the stock of money.

Why did you get involved with analysing crypto currencies and other new forms of money?

Because private commercial monies such as money market fund shares (MMFs) and now also cryptocurrencies are antipodes to sovereign money. Facebook’s current project of a global cryptocurrency called Libra has apparently acted as a wake-up call for central bankers and politicians. They have let things slide for too long. The monetary lead has been subrogated to the banks and new monetary institutions.

Why are cryptocurrencies such a powerful idea?

Because they combine the strong fascination of a disruptive technology with the apparently irresistible fascination of becoming a money creator – traditionally the privilege of feudal lords and nation-states.

Why do you think it’s a problem rather than an opportunity?

Because money creation is out of control and financial markets tend to overshoot. As a consequence, credit and debt expand excessively disproportionate to any real economic development. This results in inflation or in asset bubbles, financial instability and crises.

Our ancestors had similar problems with out-of-control paper money, and we have the problem for a long time with bank deposit money, bankmoney for short. On top of this there are now MMFs and cryptocurrencies. The more these monies grow, the more they become systemically relevant and thus too important to be let down in the next crisis which they will surely produce.

The answer is to introduce central-bank digital currency – that is, sovereign money – on a large scale so as to regain monetary control by strengthening the quantity lever of monetary policy.

How can people find out more about you & your work?

Visit sovereignmoney.site.

Anything else you’d like to add / we should have asked?

You can read more about my ideas on these topics here ->

Facebook’s Libra project of a global digital currency. An assessment

https://sovereignmoney.site/facebook-libra-project-of-a-global-digital-currency

or

Digital Currency. Retaining or Overcoming the Bankmoney Regime? Design principles that make the difference

https://sovereignmoney.site/digital-currency

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