We consider the debut of a new monetary instrument, central bank digital currencies (CBDCs). Drawing on examples from monetary history, we argue that a successful monetary transformation must combine microeconomic efficiency with macroeconomic credibility. A paradoxical feature of these...

Before the US Federal Reserve and the Bank of England, the Bank of Amsterdam ('Bank') was a dominant central bank with a global impact on money and credit. How a Ledger Became a Central Bank draws on extensive archival data and rich secondary literature, to offer a new and detailed portrait of...