Beyond the static money multiplier: in search of a dynamic theory of money

In this paper, we analyze the process of money creation in a credit economy. We start from the consideration that the traditional money multiplier is a poor description of this process and present an alternative and dynamic approach that takes into account the heterogeneity of agents in the economy and their interactions. We show that this heterogeneity can account for the instability of the multiplier and that it can make the system path-dependent. By using concepts and techniques borrowed from network theory and statistical mechanics, we then try to shed some light on the actual process by which money is endogenously created in an economy.