We use a simple model to illustrate that nominal GDP targeting might produce a suboptimal equilibrium if there is a growth-maximizing rate of inflation. Following a shock, we find that targeting nominal GDP might result in lower real GDP growth than the economy could sustainably produce given...

Many economists, including former Fed chairman Ben Bernanke, believe that the gold standard generates poor economic outcomes including output volatility, price instability, financial panics, the spread of recessions via the exchange rate, and speculation-induced collapse. These problems,...

This issue brief discusses the potential causes of the post-crisis decline in bank lending. First, it compares bank lending to several measures of economic activity. Second, it discusses two other factors that affect lending: regulation and changes in the Fed's monetary policy. The evidence...

Most depositors love the security offered by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), but few realize the true costs of deposit insurance. Since government deposit insurance is not priced at “actuarially fair” rates, it raises the costs of insurance for depositors and encourages...

This paper considers the effects of changing expectations under macroeconomic policies that rely on targeting nominal variables, such as NGDP targeting. These proposals, in line with a dynamic conception of the equation of exchange, argue that the monetary authority can achieve any dynamic...

Current money matching models employ either random matching or endogenous matching processes, both of which oversimplify the problem. We maintain that although most economic interactions are intentional, randomness still exists in consumption preferences. We offer an endogenous matching model of...

How has the impact of wars affected our historical understanding of U.S. economic performance? While most economists believe the Federal Reserve has improved performance, the existing literature fails to account for exogenous shocks such as periods of war. This paper compares U.S. economic...

Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke has claimed that the Fed's bank bailouts during the 2008 financial crisis were consistent with Walter Bagehot's rules for a lender of last resort. This paper demonstrates Bernanke's claims to be mistaken. First, we outline Bagehot's doctrine for a classical...

The Federal Reserve regulates U.S. commercial banks using a system of risk-based capital (RBC) regulations based on the Basel Accords. Unfortunately, the Fed's misrating of several assets such as mortgage-backed securities encouraged the build-up of these assets in the banking system and was a...

This paper considers potential alternatives to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) system of deposit insurance in the United States. We review the international and historical literature on deposit insurance which finds higher government involvement in the deposit insurance system...