The Money View Reading Group reads and discusses writings on money, banking, and finance. We are a self-directed group. Anyone interested in money and banking can read the readings, join us for discussions, or suggest future readings.

We usually meet via Zoom every other Tuesday at 4 pm Eastern Time US (New York).

https://www.amazon.com/Empire-Value-Foundation-Economics-Press/dp/026202697X

From the description:

Orléan argues that value is not bound up with labor, or utility, or any other property that preexists market exchange. Economic value, he contends, is a social force whose vast sphere of influence, amounting to a kind of empire, extends to every aspect of economic life. Markets are based on the identification of value with money, and exchange value can only be regarded as a social institution. Financial markets, for example, instead of defining an extrinsic, objective value for securities, act as a mechanism for arriving at a reference price that will be accepted by all investors. What economists must therefore study, Orléan urges, is the hold that value has over individuals and how it shapes their perceptions and behavior.

During the off week, we discuss Harold Moulton’s famous 1918 articles “Commercial Banking and Capital Formation” I–IV in the Journal of Political Economy.

These articles examine the role of commercial banking in the process of capital formation, challenging traditional views on the relationship between banking operations and the accumulation of physical capital. Moulton provides a critique of the Real Bills Doctrine, advocates investment in long-term projects, emphasizes the interdependence of the banking and industrial sectors, and argues that the shiftability (market liquidity) of long-term assets could help maintain stability of the financial system.

• I — https://www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/10.1086/253104
• II — https://www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/10.1086/253113
• III — https://www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/10.1086/253118
• IV — https://www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/10.1086/253132

We discuss the Introduction and Part 1 of The Empire of Value by André Orléan.

Introduction

Part I: Critique of Political Economy

• Chapter 1: Substance Value
• Chapter 2: Market Objectivity
• Chapter 3: Scarcity and Status

During the off week, Nadav Orian Peer joins us to discuss his paper, “Climate Alignment For Banks: The Stories That Numbers Tell.”

https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=5126007

From the Abstract:

As the Climate Crisis rages, banking regulation becomes a key arena for climate advocacy. After all, every major economic investment-whether in fossil fuels or clean technology-requires finance, and much of that finance comes from large banks. This brings-up the notion of “climate alignment,” which is at the center of this Article. Climate alignment measures the extent to which bank lending is consistent with the kind of investments that need to be made (or avoided) for the world to meet Paris Agreement goals (aiming to limit global warming to well-below 2°C). Climate alignment is very different from the “climate risk” that commands bank regulators’ current efforts. Climate risk is about mitigating losses that climate change may cause to banks. Climate alignment flips the script, focusing instead on mitigating banks’ own impact on the climate. A central message of the Article is that rapid decarbonization requires bank regulators to shift their primary focus from risk to alignment.

We discuss the Parts 2 and 3 of The Empire of Value by André Orléan.

Part II: The Institution of Value

• Chapter 4: Money
• Chapter 5: A New Approach to Value

Part III: Market Finance

• Chapter 6: Financial Valuation
• Chapter 7: Liquidity and Speculation

We discuss Part 4 and the Conclusion of The Empire of Value by André Orléan.

Part IV: Self-referential Finance and the Subprime Crisis

• Chapter 8: Euphoria: 2003 to 2007
• Chapter 9: The Crisis: 2007 to 2008

Conclusion

• The Wheels of Commerce by Fernand Braudel (selected chapters) (1979/1982)
• A Study of Money Flows in the United States by Morris Copeland (1952)
• Calming the Storms: The Carry Trade, the Banking School and British Financial Crises Since 1825 by Charles Read (2023)
• An Engine, Not a Camera: How Financial Models Shape Markets by Donald MacKenzie (2007)
• The Golden Age of the Quantity Theory by David Laidler (1991)
• Beyond Banks: Technology, Regulation, and the Future of Money by Dan Awrey (2024)
• Capitalizing on Crisis: The Political Origins of the Rise of Finance by Greta Krippner (2011)
• Fragile by Design: The Political Origins of Banking Crises and Scarce Credit by Charles W. Calomiris and Stephen Haber (2014)
• Central Bank Capitalism: Monetary Policy in Times of Crisis by Joscha Wullweber (2024)
• Comparing Financial Systems by Franklin Allen and Douglas Gale (2000)
• Introduction to Central Banking by Ulrich Bindseil and Alessio Fota (2021)
• The Chairman: John J. McCloy & The Making of the American Establishment by Kai Bird (1992)
• The Bailout State: Why Governments Rescue Banks, Not People by Martijn Konings (2025)
• Central Banking Before 1800: A Rehabilitation by Ulrich Bindseil (2019)

• Minsky by Daniel H. Neilson (2019)
  2021-03-24 — Discussion Session 1
  2021-03-31 — Discussion Session 2
  2021-04-07 — Discussion with Daniel Neilson
• The Art of Central Banking (Chapter IV) by Ralph Hawtrey (1933)
  2021-04-21 — Discussion Session 1
  2021-05-05 — Discussion Session 2
  2021-05-26 — Discussion with David Glasner
• BIS Working Paper: Breaking free of the triple coincidence in international finance (2015)
  2021-05-19 — Discussion Session
• Making Money: Coin, Currency, and the Coming of Capitalism by Christine Desan (2014)
  2021-06-02 — Discussion Session 1
  2021-06-16 — Discussion Session 2
  2021-06-30 — Discussion Session 3
  2021-07-14 — Discussion with Christine Desan
• Global Domain of the Dollar: 8 Questions by Robert McCauley
  2021-07-07 — Discussion with Robert McCauley
• Money in a Theory of Finance by John G. Gurley, Edward S. Shaw (1960)
  2021-07-21 — Discussion Session 1
  2021-08-04 — Discussion Session 2
  2021-08-18 — Discussion Session 3
• BIS and Bank of England reports on Central Bank Digital Currencies
  2021-07-28 — Discussion Session
• The World in Depression, 1929-1939 by Charles P. Kindleberger (1973)
  2021-09-01 — Discussion Session 1
  2021-09-15 — Discussion Session 2
  2021-09-29 — Discussion Session 3
• The Rise of Carry by Jamie Lee et al (2019)
  2021-10-13 — Discussion Session 1
  2021-10-27 — Discussion Session 2
• The Money Interest and the Public Interest by Perry Mehrling (1998)
  2021-11-10 — Discussion Session 1 | Allyn Young
  2021-11-24 — Discussion Session 2 | Alvin Hanson
  2021-12-08 — Discussion Session 3 | Edward Shaw
• Controlling Credit by Eric Monnet (2018)
  2022-01-05 — Discussion Session 1
  2022-01-19 — Discussion Session 2
• The Menace of Fiscal QE by George Selgin (2020)
  2022-02-02 — Discussion Session
• The New Lombard Street by Perry Mehrling (2011)
  2022-02-23 — Discussion Session 1
  2022-03-09 — Discussion Session 2
  2022-03-23 — Discussion Session 3
• Fighting Financial Crises: Learning from the Past by Gary Gorton, Ellis Tallman (2021)
  2022-04-20 — Discussion Session 1
  2022-05-11 — Discussion Session 2
• Money and empire: The international gold standard, 1890-1914 by Marcello De Cecco (1974)
  2022-05-25 — Discussion Session 1
  2022-06-15 — Discussion Session 2
• Central Bank Cooperation 1924-31 by Stephen Clarke (1967)
  2022-06-22 — Discussion Session 1
  2022-07-06 — Discussion Session 2
• The Money Problem: Rethinking Financial Regulation by Morgan Ricks (2016)
  2022-07-27 — Discussion Session 1
  2022-08-10 — Discussion Session 2
  2022-08-17 — Discussion with Morgan Ricks
• The Crypto Banking System by Sébastien Derivaux (2022)
  2022-09-28 — Discussion with Sébastien Derivaux
• The Evolution of Central Banking: Theory and History by Stefano Ugolini (2017)
  2022-08-24 — Discussion Session 1
  2022-09-07 — Discussion Session 2
  2022-09-21 — Discussion Session 3
  2022-10-05 — Discussion with Stefano Ugolini
• A Financial History of Western Europe by Charles P. Kindleberger (1984, 1993)
  2022-10-19 — Discussion Session 1 | Part 1: Money
  2022-11-02 — Discussion Session 2 | Part 2: Banking
  2022-11-16 — Discussion Session 3 | Part 3: Finance
  2023-01-11 — Discussion Session 4 | Part 4: The Interwar Period
  2023-01-18 — Discussion Session 5 | Part 5: After World War II
• Money and Empire: Charles P. Kindleberger and the Dollar System by Perry Mehrling (2022)
  2022-11-30 — Discussion Session 1 | Part 1: Intellectual Formation, 1910–1948
  2022-12-14 — Discussion Session 2 | Part 2: International Economist, 1948–1976
  2022-12-21 — Discussion Session 3 | Part 3: Historical Economist, 1976–2003
  2022-12-21 — Discussion #1 with Perry Mehrling
  2023-01-04 — Discussion #2 with Perry Mehrling
• Bonds without Borders: A History of the Eurobond Market by Chris O’Malley (2015)
  2023-02-15 — Discussion Session 1
  2023-03-01 — Discussion Session 2
• Monetary Policy Operations and the Financial System by Ulrich Bindseil (2014)
  2023-03-15 — Discussion Session 1 (Ch 1-8)
  2023-03-29 — Discussion Session 2 (Ch 9-12)
  2023-04-12 — Discussion Session 3 (Ch 13-18)
• Capital Wars: The Rise of Global Liquidity by Michael J. Howell (2020)
  2023-04-26 — Discussion Session 1 (Ch 1-7)
  2023-05-10 — Discussion Session 2 (Ch 8-14)
• A Market Theory of Money by John Hicks (1989)
  2023-05-24 — Discussion Session 1 (Ch 1-7)
  2023-06-07 — Discussion Session 2 (Ch 8-15)
• The Currency of Politics: The Political Theory of Money from Aristotle to Keynes by Stefan Eich (2022)
  2023-06-28 — Discussion Session 1 (Ch 1 & 2)
  2023-07-19 — Discussion Session 2 (Ch 3 & 4)
  2023-08-02 — Discussion Session 3 (Ch 5 & 6)
  2023-08-14 — Discussion with Stefan Eich
• Fischer Black and the Revolutionary Idea of Finance by Perry Mehrling (2005)
  2023-08-22 — Discussion Session 1 (Ch 1–5)
  2023-09-05 — Discussion Session 2 (Ch 6–8)
  2023-09-19 — Discussion Session 3 (Ch 9–11)
  2023-09-26 — Discussion with Perry Mehrling
• The Evolution of Central Banks by Charles Goodhart (1988)
  2023-10-03 — Discussion Session 1 (Ch 1–6)
  2023-10-17 — Discussion Session 2 (Ch 7–8, Appendix)
• The Repo Market: Shorts, Shortages, and Squeezes by Scott Skyrm (2023)
  2023-11-07 — Discussion Session 1 (pages 1–92)
  2023-11-21 — Discussion Session 2 (pages 93–186)
  2023-12-05 — Discussion Session 3 (pages 187–310) Part 1 — Part 2
  2023-12-12 — Discussion with Scott Skyrm From 39:20
• The Volatility Machine: Emerging Economies and the Threat of Financial Collapse by Michael Pettis (2001)
  2023-12-19 — Discussion Session 1 (Ch 1–5)
  2024-01-02 — Discussion Session 2 (Ch 6–10)
  2024-01-09 — Discussion with Michael Pettis
• International Capital Movements by Charles P. Kindleberger (1987)
  2024-01-16 — Discussion Session 1 (Ch 1 & 2)
  2024-01-30 — Discussion Session 2 (Ch 3 & 4)
• A Political Theory of Money by Anush Kapadia (2024)
  2024-02-20 — Discussion Session 1 (Ch 1–4)
  2024-03-05 — Discussion Session 2 (Ch 5–7)
  2024-03-19 — Discussion Session 3 (Ch 8–12)
  2024-03-26 — Discussion with Anush Kapadia
• The Rise of Central Banks: State Power in Financial Capitalism by Leon Wansleben (2023)
  2024-04-02 — Discussion Session 1 (Ch 1–3)
  2024-04-23 — Discussion Session 2 (Ch 4–6)
  2024-05-07 — Discussion with Leon Wansleben
• The Money Illusion: Market Monetarism, the Great Recession, and the Future of Monetary Policy by Scott Sumner (2021)
  2024-05-14 — Discussion Session 1 (Parts 1 & 2)
  2024-05-28 — Discussion Session 2 (Parts 3 & 4)
  2024-06-18 — Discussion Session 3 (Parts 5 & 6)
  2024-06-25 — Discussion with Scott Sumner
• Private Money and Public Currencies: The Sixteenth Century Challenge: The Sixteenth Century Challenge by Boyer-Xambeu, Deleplace, and Gillard (1994)
  2024-07-02 — Discussion Session 1 (Ch 1–3)
  2024-07-16 — Discussion Session 2 (Ch 4 & 5)
  2024-07-30 — Discussion Session 3 (Ch 6, 7 & Conclusion)
• The Arena of International Finance by Charles A. Coombs (1976)
  2024-08-13 — Discussion Session 1 (Ch 1ー6)
  2024-08-27 — Discussion Session 2 (Ch 7–12)
• The Bill on London: or The Finance of Trade by Bills of Exchange by Gillett Brothers (1952/1976)
  2024-09-17 — Discussion Session
• Birth of a Market: The U.S. Treasury Securities Market from the Great War to the Great Depression by Kenneth D. Garbade (2012)
  2024-10-01 — Discussion Session 1 (Ch 1–10)
  2024-10-15 — Discussion Session 2 (Ch 11–15)
  2024-10-29 — Discussion Session 3 (Ch 16–24)
• A Monetary and Fiscal History of the United States, 1961–2021 by Alan S. Blinder (2022)
  2024-11-12 — Discussion Session 1 (Ch 1–7)
  2024-11-26 — Discussion Session 2 (Ch 8–13)
  2024-12-10 — Discussion Session 3 (Ch 14–19)
• Building a Ruin: The Cold War Politics of Soviet Economic Reform by Yakov Feygin (2024)
  2025-01-07 — Discussion Session 1 (Ch 1–3)
  2025-01-21 — Discussion Session 2 (Ch 4–6)
  2025-02-04 — Discussion Session 3 (Ch 7 & Afterword)
• A Crash Course on Crises: Macroeconomic Concepts for Run-Ups, Collapses, and Recoveries by Markus K. Brunnermeier and Ricardo Reis (2023)
  2025-02-25 — Discussion Session 1 (Parts 1 and 2)
  2025-03-11 — Discussion Session 2 (Parts 3 and 4)

2023-04-05 Discussion of Silicon Valley Bank
2023-04-19 Institutional Cash Pools by Zoltan Pozsar (2011)
2023-05-03 BIS Bulletin #73: Stablecoins vs. Tokenized Deposits (May 3, 2023)
2023-07-05 The Credit–Money Hierarchy: a Republican , Egalitarian Appraisal by Aaron James (2023)
2023-07-26 Public Purpose Finance: The Government’s Role as Lender by Nadav Orian Peer (2020)
2023-10-24 Money and the Public Debt by Lev Menand and Joshua Younger (2023) | 1
2023-10-31 Money and the Public Debt by Lev Menand and Joshua Younger (2023) | 2
2023-11-14 ICMA Repo FAQ by Richard Comotto (2013/2019)
2023-11-28 Basis Trades and Treasury Market Illiquidity by Daniel Barth & Jay Kahn (2020)
2024-01-23 Capital flows and the current account by Borio and Disyatat (2015)
2024-02-13 The dual currency system of Renaissance Europe by Luca Fantacci (2008)
2024-02-27 BIS: Buy now, pay later: a cross-country analysis by Cornelli et al. (2023)
2024-03-12 The non-use of money in the Middle Ages by Bell, Brooks, and Moore (2017)
2024-04-09 The Central Role of Credit Crunches in Recent Financial History by Albert M. Wojnilower (1980)
2024-04-16 Measuring Equilibrium in the Balance of Payments by Charles P. Kindleberger (1969)
2024-04-30 The Rise and Risks of Private Credit — GFSR (April, 2024)
2024-06-04 BIS Working Paper No 1100: Getting up from the floor by Claudio Borio (May, 2023)
2024-06-11 The Offshore Dollar and US Policy by Robert McCauley (May, 2024)
2024-07-09 The (impossible) repo trinity: the political economy of repo markets by Daniela Gabor (2016)
2024-08-07 A Safe Haven for Hidden Risks (May 30, 2024) and Rate Transformation (November 4, 2023) by Elham Saeidinezhad
2024-08-20 The Collateral Supply Effect on Central Bank Policy by Carolyn Sissoko (2020)
2024-09-10 Monetary Policy Implications of Market Maker of Last Resort Operations by Anil K Kashyap (August 23, 2024)
2024-11-05 BIS Bulletin No 90: The market turbulence and carry trade unwind of August 2024 (August 27, 2024)
2024-11-19 Yen Carry Trade and the Subprime Crisis by Masazumi Hattori and Hyun Song Shin (2009)
2024-12-03 After the Allocation: What Role for the Special Drawing Rights System? by Pforr, Pape, and Murau (2022)
2025-01-14 Where Profits Come From by the Levy Forecasting Center by Levy, Farnham, & Rajan (2008/1997)
2025-01-28 The Broad Consequences of Narrow Banking by Matheus R. Grasseli and Alexander Lipton (2019)
2025-02-11 Failing Banks by Sergio Correia, Stephen Luck, and Emil Verner (2024)
2025-02-18 Odd Lots — The Hidden History of Eurodollars by Lev Menand and Joshua Younger (January 2025)
2025-03-04 Of Last Resort: Evaluating the Treasury-Equity Model of Federal Reserve Emergency Lending by Steven Kelly (2024)
2025-03-18 Commercial Banking and Capital Formation I–IV by Harold Moulton (1918)