Dollarisation in Theory and Practice

John C. B. Cooper

Published: December 2004


Dollarisation involves the replacement of a soft domestic currency with a hard foreign alternative. This paper explains the different forms that dollarisation can take, its consequences for an economy, and concludes by exploring the experience of Panama, a country dollarised since 1904.



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More Papers From This Author in World Economics:


Gold and Silver as Monetary Metals
Author: John Cooper

Commodity money systems, based upon gold or silver, provided relative economic stability for centuries. On the other hand, our modern paper money system, based upon unbacked government liabilities, is particularly vulnerable to abuse. The various financial crises during the twentieth century bear witness to that. This paper seeks to explain the mechanics of the former Gold and Silver Standards and provides an overview of America’s experience with its bimetallic system.

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