Establishing a Central Bank: Issues in Europe and Lessons from the U.S.

Much recent discussion has focused on the prospects for monetary unification in Europe and the possible creation of a European central bank. This book discusses in detail the possible structure and operational procedures of such a bank and investigates their implications for the community’s member states and for the global economy. Presented at a conference organized jointly by the Centre for Economic Policy Research, Georgetown University’s Center for German and European Studies and the International Monetary Fund, the papers collected here examine evidence from US experience, the influence of Community voting rules on monetary policy, the implications of centralized policy-making and a single currency, the fiscal requirements of monetary union, and the possible role of the ecu as an international reserve currency.