Central banking in the twenty-first century

Abstract

The recent banking crisis has opened up the discourse about central banking. The purpose here is to revisit the principles of central banking and the theoretical framework for applying them in light of these changed conditions. We focus on different understandings of the economic process and how they relate to the principles of central banking, comparing the dominant technocratic approach to central banking theory with a more traditional political economy approach. We consider the recent use of 'unconventional' tools of monetary policy and a range of current proposals for reform of money, banking and central banking. It is argued that central banking needs a new framework which recognises the interdependencies between the conditions for monetary stability, financial stability and economic stability and between the policy measures by which these goals may be addressed.