- Enseignant-e: Cyril Monnet
This course offers an introduction to monetary economics, broadly defined. Alongside the economic intuition, it introduces the standard modelling tools students need to conduct research and to read the literature in the field. The course is therefore conceptual in orientation, and students will gain familiarity with the technical apparatus of modern macroeconomics.
Topics include the statistical and economic definitions of money, inflation, central bank balance sheets, and the relative merits of public and private provision of money, as the well the link between fiscal and monetary policies. The course also extends into financial intermediation, particularly in its treatment of credit (inside money), essential to understand the mechanics of financial crisis. Time permitting, new forms of money such as central bank digital currencies and stablecoins will be discussed, as well as the global payment system.
Along the way, students will be exposed to concepts of wider relevance in economics: limited commitment, the time inconsistency of economic policy, and the aggregate consequences of strategic complementarities.