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Monetary Policy in a World of Cryptocurrencies

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  • Pierpaolo Benigno

Abstract

Can currency competition affect central banks' control of interest rates and prices? Yes, it can. In a two-currency world with competing cash (material or digital), the growth rate of the cryptocurrency sets an upper bound on the nominal interest rate and the attainable inflation rate, if the government currency is to retain its role as medium of exchange. In any case, the government has full control of the inflation rate. With an interest-bearing digital currency, equilibria in which government currency loses medium-of-exchange property are ruled out. This benefit comes at the cost of relinquishing control over the inflation rate.

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  • Pierpaolo Benigno, 2022. "Monetary Policy in a World of Cryptocurrencies," Diskussionsschriften dp2211, Universitaet Bern, Departement Volkswirtschaft.
    • Handle: RePEc:ube:dpvwib:dp2211
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    Cited by:

    1. Schilling, Linda & Fernández-Villaverde, Jesús & Uhlig, Harald, 2024. "Central bank digital currency: When price and bank stability collide," Journal of Monetary Economics, Elsevier, vol. 145(C).
    2. Harald Uhlig & Taojun Xie, 2020. "Parallel Digital Currencies and Sticky Prices," Working Papers 2020-188, Becker Friedman Institute for Research In Economics.
    3. Pourpourides, Panayiotis, 2023. "Long-Term Nexus of Macroeconomic and Financial Fundamentals with Cryptocurrencies," Cardiff Economics Working Papers E2023/23, Cardiff University, Cardiff Business School, Economics Section.
    4. Daisuke Ikeda, 2020. "Digital Money as a Unit of Account and Monetary Policy in Open Economies," IMES Discussion Paper Series 20-E-15, Institute for Monetary and Economic Studies, Bank of Japan.
    5. Guizhou Wang & Kjell Hausken, 2021. "Governmental Taxation of Households Choosing between a National Currency and a Cryptocurrency," Games, MDPI, vol. 12(2), pages 1-24, April.
    6. Benigno, Pierpaolo & Schilling, Linda M. & Uhlig, Harald, 2022. "Cryptocurrencies, currency competition, and the impossible trinity," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 136(C).
    7. Alex Cukierman, 2020. "Reflections on welfare and political economy aspects of a central bank digital currency," Manchester School, University of Manchester, vol. 88(S1), pages 114-125, September.
    8. Sean Foley & Jonathan R Karlsen & Tālis J Putniņš, 2019. "Sex, Drugs, and Bitcoin: How Much Illegal Activity Is Financed through Cryptocurrencies?," The Review of Financial Studies, Society for Financial Studies, vol. 32(5), pages 1798-1853.
    9. Andrew Clark & Alexander Mihailov, 2019. "Why private cryptocurrencies cannot serve as international reserves but central bank digital currencies can," Economics Discussion Papers em-dp2019-09, Department of Economics, University of Reading.
    10. Salvatore Nisticò, 2019. "Criptovalute, Sovranismo e Sistema Monetario," Working Papers 8/19, Sapienza University of Rome, DISS.
    11. Osiebuni Collins OBU & Wilfred I. UKPERE, 2022. "The Implications of the Incursion of Cryptocurrency on the Effectiveness of Fiscal Policy," Review of Applied Socio-Economic Research, Pro Global Science Association, vol. 23(1), pages 134-150, June.
    12. Cukierman, Alex, 2019. "Welfare and Political Economy Aspects of a Central Bank Digital Currency," CEPR Discussion Papers 13728, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    13. Cong, Lin William & Mayer, Simon, 2022. "The Coming Battle of Digital Currencies," Applied Economics and Policy Working Paper Series 320020, Cornell University, Department of Applied Economics and Management.
    14. Marcelo A. T. Aragão, 2021. "A Few Things You Wanted to Know about the Economics of CBDCs, but were Afraid to Model: a survey of what we can learn from who has done," Working Papers Series 554, Central Bank of Brazil, Research Department.

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