Academic Day: Prof. Dr. Lex Hoogduin, Prof. Dr. Thorstein Polleit, Prof. Dr. Olaf Sleijpen, and Other Academics and Writers on Money 

After a corona gap of two years, on Monday, June 13 in Utrecht, CSS–NL organized its annual Academic Day again! The program was led by Prof. Dr. Lex Hoogduin (University of Groningen) and focused on “Money.”

In the first panel, Money and Markets, Prof. Dr. Thorstein Polleit gave an explanation of the nature of money and of markets. The first response to this came from Teunis Brosens, who works at ING bank. In this session, the difference between Austrian and ‘mainstream’ views on money and markets emerged. Is -mild- inflation necessary or not for a smoothly growing economy? Is it important that the money supply grows with the economy, or not? And what is the role of the government in this?

In the second panel, Money and the Central Bank, a presentation by Prof. Dr. Olaf Sleijpen (Dutch Central Bank) kicked off the debate, and a first response was given by Dr. Christiaan van der Kwaak (University of Groningen). In this conversation, themes from the first panel came back, but from a different angle. Which actors ensure the creation of money in our economy? How does a central bank relate to this? What is the role of cash, and what would the introduction of a central bank digital currency mean?

In the last panel, Money and the State, the discussion began with a presentation by Prof. Dr. Mark Sanders (Maastricht University), and Lennart Ackermans (Erasmus University Rotterdam) gave the first response. Now the discussion went more in a historical and philosophical direction. How did money come about historically? What exactly is money? How do debts relate to the functioning of the money system? But also: what would the introduction of a central bank digital currency mean for the relationship between the central bank and the commercial banks? What would be the political consequences of this?