Unofficial Dollarization in Latin America: Currency Substitution, Network Externalities and Irreversibility

We examine the extent, causes and consequences of the use of foreign currency as a co-circulating medium of exchange and store of value in Latin America. Using new estimates of the amount of foreign currency in circulation in the form of US dollars, we obtain unique measures of currency substitution, asset substitution, dollarization, and bank credibility for many Latin American countries. We also specify and estimate demand functions for foreign currency in circulation in Argentina in order to examine the dynamic consequences of network externalities for hysteresis and irreversibility.