The case for central bank independence is built on an intellectual two-step. Step one argues there is a problem of inflation prone government. Step two argues independence is the solution to that problem. This paper challenges that case and shows it is based on false politics and economics. The...

This paper investigates the determinants of countries' choice of monetary policy frameworks (MPF) for emerging and developing countries. Countries make different MPF choices and we think it is because they have different country-level characteristics (e.g. democratic strength and trade...

We examine the use of central bank capital as an unconventional monetary policy tool. In this setting, a central bank employs digital currency to transfer digital cash to each household, thus supporting consumption directly when needed. The asset side of the central bank's balance sheet remains...

We examine the use of central bank capital as an unconventional monetary policy tool. In this setting, a central bank employs digital currency to transfer digital cash to each household, thus supporting consumption directly when needed. The asset side of the central bank's balance sheet remains...

Many central banks discuss the introduction of a Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC). Empirical evidence suggests that households may differ in their willingness to hold CBDC. Against this background, this paper investigates the macroeconomic effects of different CBDC regimes in a New Keynesian...

In 2002 in reviewing the role of the Federal Reserve System (FED) the United States General Accounting Office declared that "We found no widely accepted, analytically based criteria to show whether a central bank needs capital as a cushion against losses or how the level of such an account...

I construct a quarterly dataset on political pressure faced by 118 central banks from 2010 to 2018 using country-level reports. I code whether each central bank is reportedly succumbing to pressure, resisting pressure, or not facing pressure. About 10% of central banks reportedly face political...

A two-country general equilibrium model with large wage setters and conservative monetary authorities is employed to investigate the welfare implications of three international monetary regimes: i) non-cooperative, ii) cooperative, and iii) monetary union. The analysis shows that the unions'...

Independent central banks are subject to multiple mechanisms of ex-ante and ex-post democratic control by the electoral-representative branches of government, the Legislative and Executive. This paper presents and compares legal provisions regulating several, but not all, of those control...

What governs central bank decisions? Most considerations focus on motivations. Instead, we consider the extent to which specific behaviors have adaptive value in the context of central banking. From this perspective, poor decisions are not the product of poor motivations. They are, instead, a...