We have helicopter money when there is a lump-sum monetary transfer which produces intended central bank capital losses and/or a permanent monetary base change. This extraordinary monetary policy option appears whenever there is a significant economic crisis. But then the helicopter never flies....

This article discusses a form of fiscal monetization that produces losses in the central bank's balance sheet, without a permanent increase in the money base. If an independent central bank acts as a long-sighted policymaker, an optimal helicopter monetary policy can be identified. At the same...

Using a political economy approach, this paper sheds light on how two factors – central bankers' preferences and the central bank's design – progressively assumed a crucial role in the evolution of monetary policy economics in the last four decades. The two factors jointly identify the...

This paper explores the relationship between central bank communication and market sentiment,and proposes a new measure. Market sentiment is proxied using a Twitter-based metric: theCentral Bank Surprise Index. The empirical study covers three cases: the Federal Reserve, theEuropean Central Bank...

This paper builds a model of populism called Democratic Rioting in which citizens – i.e. the poor and the rich - are assumed to be heavily influenced by psychological group dynamics that result from banking shocks. We highlight a display of anger that is channelled through an election instead...

The aim of this paper is to review the historical development of monetary policy theory since the 1980s using as focal point the nexus among central bank governance, central banker preferences and monetary policy effectiveness. Assuming a positive perspective the review highlights three...