Reconsidering the Privileged Powers of Banks

ISBN-13: 9789819960576 / Angielski / Twarda / 2023

Kozo Torasan Mayumi;Ansel Renner

Opis

This book explores the privileged powers commercial banks hold, namely, their ability to create money out of nothing and then have that money grow in tune with a positive interest rate. Said powers defy, in an unnatural sense, the first and second laws of thermodynamics. The necessity of understanding the dual natures of money, wealth, and real capital, or, put differently, the reality that these three entities are simultaneously individual affluence and collective biophysical debt, is emphasized. The book culminates by proposing completely new foundations of money, wealth, and real capital for any society on a pathway of responsible development.

Spis treści

Chapter 1:           Introduction

Chapter 2:           The First Unnatural Power Given to Commercial Banks: Creation of Money Out of Nothing

Chapter 3:           The Second Unnatural Power Given to Commercial Banks: The Origin of Money Interest and Its Implication for Sustainability

Chapter 4:           Lucrative Financial Activities and Their Close Relation to the Solvency of Society

Chapter 5:           The Dual Nature of Money: Pecuniary Individualistic Perspectives Endanger Collectivistic Perspectives for Biophysical Sustainability

Chapter 6:           Expanding Debt Trap and Reviving the Biophysical View on Wealth for a More Sustainable and Equitable Future: The Buddhist Perspective on a Decent Life

Chapter 7:           Real Capital and its Relation to Sustainability: The Dual Nature of Real Capital as Biophysical Wealth

Chapter 8:           Sustainability and the Road to Sovereign Money

Chapter 9:           Conclusion: Toward a Pathway of Responsible Development

O autorze

Kozo Torasan Mayumi graduated from the Graduate School of Engineering at the Department of Applied Mathematics and Physics of Kyoto University. Between 1984 and 1988, he studied bioeconomics at the Department of Economics of Vanderbilt University under Prof. Nicholas Georgescu-Roegen’s supervision. Mayumi has been working in the field of energy analysis, ecological economics and complexity/hierarchy theory. Having retired from Tokushima University, he now works at the Kyoto College of Graduate Studies for Informatics.

Ansel Renner graduated from the Department of Geography and School of Environment of McGill University and the Institute of Environmental Science and Technology of the Autonomous University of Barcelona. As an academic researcher at the latter-mentioned institute, also as an independent contractor, Renner has been working on accounting methodology for processes of informed deliberation on the science-policy interface in relation to systemic issues of sustainability.

Blurb

“This is a highly recommended read for anyone interested in understanding why achieving a more sustainable future will require radical changes in the way the financial sector is regulated.”

—Roldan Muradian, International Society for Ecological Economics, Brazil

“[…] Money is ‘wealth’ for individuals and ‘debt’ for the society, to which the individuals belong. […] This book, written by Mayumi and Renner, provides a detailed and well-informed, sobering analysis of these contradictions and the abuses associated with the current use of the coding provided by money in modern society.”

—Mario Giampietro, Autonomous University of Barcelona, Spain

“[…] the authors of this intriguing book embark on a profound exploration of the privileged role of money creation that commercial banks have and the related issue of interest and discount rates.”

—Tommaso Luzzati, University of Pisa, Italy

“This magnificent book, exhaustively written, points sharply to [the] problem, […] and presents and discusses openly and with radical bravery, an alternative sovereign money system for the common good of humanity and of the Earth.”

—Jesús Ramos-Martín, Autonomous University of Barcelona, Spain

“This insightful work delves into the intricate relationship between finance, economic growth, and environmental degradation […]. Mayumi and Renner’s thought-provoking analysis challenges readers to reconsider the privileged powers of banks and explore alternative paths toward a resilient and sustainable

financial system.”

—Silvio Funtowicz, University of Bergen, Norway

This book reconsiders the privileged powers commercial banks hold, i.e., their ability to create money out of nothing and then have that money grow with a positive interest rate. Said powers defy the first and second laws of thermodynamics. The necessity of understanding the dual natures of money, wealth, and real capital, or, put differently, the reality that these three entities are simultaneously individual affluence and collective biophysical debt, is emphasized. The book culminates by proposing new foundations of money, wealth, and real capital for sustainability.

Kozo Torasan Mayumi, the last student of Georgescu-Roegen, works at the Kyoto

College of Graduate Studies for Informatics.

Ansel Renner works at the Autonomous University of Barcelona and independently

contracts on bioeconomics.