The Theory of Monetary Institutions

The Theory of Monetary Institutions provides a theoretical and historically grounded account of contemporary and alternative monetary regimes.  Monetary economists and their advanced undergraduate and graduate-level students will use the book as a main text in Monetary Policy courses and as a supplementary text in courses such as Money and Banking, Monetary Theory, Economic History, Economic Methodology, and Philosophy of Economics.

To purchase or order an examination copy from the publisher

Synopsis, Author Information, and summary contents

Detailed table of contents

Dust-jacket blurbs:

                        "The Theory of Monetary Institutions is a thorough and insightful
                         treatment of the emergence and evolution of money and banking
                         regimes. Professor White's brilliant exposition of alternative regimes is
                         innovative and sheds a great deal of light upon the crucial features of
                         contemporary money and banking institutions. This tour-de-force is a
                         'must-read'." Steve H. Hanke, The John Hopkins University

                         "Larry White's The Theory of Monetary Institutions provides a very
                         clear, extremely readable and up-to-date overview of monetary theory.
                         White provides a uniquely insightful perspective into a difficult and
                         controversial area, and his arguments and analysis are unbeatable.
                         All monetary economists should read it." Kevin Dowd, University of
                         Sheffield

                         "White has written an academically rigorous text covering the theory
                         of money, banking, and monetary policy. The text stands out from
                         others in the way it describes the evolution of economists' thinking
                         about monetary institutions. White excels in combining the historic
                         with the contemporary, the abstract with the tangible, and the
                         theoretical with the practical. The chapters on alternative monetary
                         regimes will no doubt challenge many widely-held views about the
                         proper role of government within an economy's monetary system."
                        James A. Overdahl

                         "Lawrence H. White has emerged as one of the most thoughtful
                         monetary economists of his generation, and The Theory of Monetary
                         Institutions fills an important lacuna in the literature. The book is
                         mature and balanced; its encyclopedic knowledge of the literature
                         covers a far broader range of material than conventional texts. I am
                         aware of no other book that does such a superb job of placing
                         institutional arrangements in theoretical and historical perspective."
                        Hugh Rockoff, Rutgers University

Reviews:

Very good analysis of unusual areas of monetary theory
Lawrence White, professor for political economy at the university of Athens, Georgia, the USA, is a proven expert on the area of the monetary theory and historical analysis of the mode of operation of monetary institutions. He is much a liberal representative of the so-called "Free Banking" School. The available text book is based on White`s training meetings and summarizes his research work in the area of the emergence of monetary institutions in a well understandable way. In the center of the analysis the question about the mode of operation of a cash economy and the role of central banks is located in this system. After a short historical view of the development of money the author deals intensively on the national adjustments with the money market, which justify today the generally accepted cash supply monopoly of central banks. White does not conceal his critical attitude in relation to the quality of national cash supply and brings up for discussion function problem in practice prevailing national central bank systems today, like the bureaucracy behavior of central banks, the Seigniorage, political economic cycles, as well as the problem of the "dynamic inconsistency ". Finally he presents alternative monetary orders. On the one hand of Klein and from Hayek developed concept of the currency competition and only the conception of the New Monetary Economics to be read in few other text books. The book submitted by White represents a composition and a connection of unusual areas of the monetary policy, which in this sharpness and comprehensibility in no German-language text book are to be found to the monetary theory. It gets along thereby without a fastidious formal representation. The book is in particular suitable as entrance into also a subrange of the monetary policy neglected in American text books outstanding. (this is a Amazon.de at the university student review.)