A model of fiat money is constructed in which spatial separation and the logistics of communication are made explicit as in search theory, but exchange is organized by profit-seeking business enterprises as in all market economies. Firms mitigate search costs by opening shops that are easily...

Western Europe was plagued with currency shortages from the 14th century, at which a 'standard formula' had been devised to cure the problem. We use a cash-in-advance model of commodity money to define a currency shortage, show that they could develop and persist under commodity money regime,...

Western Europe was plagued with currency shortages from the 14th to the 19th century, at which time a `standard formula' had been devised to cure the problem. We document the evolution of mon- etary theory, policy experiments and minting tech- nology over the course of six hundred years. In a...