The first stage of the transition in the economies of the former USSR: asymmetric shocks, macroeconomic imbalances and seigniorage

The transition from a planned to a decentralised market economy amongst the new independent republics of the former Soviet Union has often been accompanied by harsh political competition to obtain the responsibility for implementing the required institutional reforms. A brief overview is provided of the components of these transitions towards a market economy. An estimate is made of the seignorage in these transitions by assessing the inflation tax on money holders that is implicit in the very high growth rates of prices in 1992.