Chapter 1578: Murder of Silver (VII.)
Based on the above analysis, the author of this article suggests that the financial authorities of the Far East should issue silver banknotes to replace silver coins, stipulate that silver banknotes should be exchanged for silver coins at an equivalent value, and that silver banknotes should be used instead of silver coins to enter circulation. The credit of silver banknotes is linked to gold and copper coins, and anyone can go to the bank and exchange a silver note with a face value of 10 thalers for 1 thaler gold coins. In this way, the total amount of liquidity in the market remains unchanged, and the hidden danger of gold and silver price comparison is also eliminated.
Finally, the author optimistically promotes the advantages of silver banknotes over silver coins, such as being easy to carry and less prone to wear and tear...... In response to people's general doubts about the credibility of paper money, the author bluntly pointed out that paper money has long existed in our lives, and bank bills have some functions of paper money, so there is no need to make a fuss about it.
At the end of the article, the author concludes with a thought-provoking rhetorical question: "'Paper money' is nothing more than a central bank bill, and since people are willing to accept bills issued by private banks in their transactions, what reason is there to reject central bank bills that are more reliable than private banks?" ”
More than 100,000 morning newspapers flew like snowflakes to the streets and alleys of taverns, factory restaurants and shop counters, waiting rooms and offices. When people from all walks of life read this headline article, most of them were immediately resistant, thinking that it was just some nonsense. However, when people noticed that the author of the article was "Liszt Keynes", their mood suddenly changed.
Liszt Keynes is known to be the most famous scholar in the Far East, and his insights have always been able to influence the economic policies of the Korasian government. Just one month after the publication of the article "The Fatal Hidden Danger of Monetary Policy", the Ministry of Finance and the Central Bank jointly issued a new monetary policy, officially announcing the revision of the double-standard monetary system that has been used for thousands of years, and gradually abolishing the legal tender status of silver thaler and replacing it with silver banknotes.
In order to establish the credibility of silver banknotes and promote the circulation of silver banknotes as soon as possible, the government announced that the government would accept the payment of various taxes and fees in silver banknotes on the date of the policy promulgation; Half of the salaries of state-owned enterprises and state farms are paid in the form of silver money; The procurement of materials and capital transactions between state-owned institutions shall be preferentially settled by bank notes; Any institution or individual can exchange silver money for the equivalent of gold or copper coins at any commercial bank in the Far East - not silver coins, of course, since the purpose of the state is to replace silver in circulation.
After more than a month of overtime work, the magic factory in Karon Industrial Zone finally completed the production tasks of "money printing machine" and "money detector" before the deadline.
Vladimir's design for the silver banknote was already in place, with 100 printing presses running at the same time, swallowing special mulberry paper day and night, spitting out stacks of beautifully printed banknotes marked with security markings.
The first batch of 500 banknote detectors were distributed to the finance and taxation departments of governments at all levels, and then it was the turn of the commercial banks, and bundles of silver banknotes were sent to the banks along with the banknotes.
At eight o'clock in the morning of April 5th, one hundred and forty-two commercial banks in the Kingdom of Kolas opened their exchange windows at the same time, and at this time, there was already a long queue of people outside the door who were eager to exchange silver banknotes. With the experience of the last new currency issuance, banks have long been familiar with such a scene and have taken it in stride.
At nine o'clock in the morning, Roland was questioned by King Rudolf I and his ministers about the issuance of silver notes at a meeting of the Cabinet.
"The central bank estimates that there are about 200 million silver coins in circulation in the market, and the face value of the first version of the silver banknote issued is a total of 100 million silver thalers, as a reserve for recycled silver coins, and in principle, one silver coin will be issued if one silver coin is recycled."
"The advantage of equivalent exchange is to maintain the credit of silver banknotes, of course, in this way, the issuance of silver banknotes is also unprofitable, and some cost of production and printing costs or something have to be pasted upside down, which can be described as a loss-making transaction."
Roland's half-truthful complaint provoked a burst of laughter, and His Majesty and the ministers knew in their hearts that this was not the time to take care of these petty profits, and that this cost was not even a fraction of the cost compared to the subsequent benefits of the issuance of silver money.
As a time-traveler from the 21st century of the earth, Roland's understanding of "paper money" is deeper than that of all those present combined. The most important thing now is to ensure that silver money is trusted and that the concept of paper money is widely accepted. Only by winning the battle of issuing silver banknotes will it be possible to issue gold banknotes of a larger denomination to replace gold coins in the future, and will it be possible to gradually implement a modern credit money system and use various monetary tools to promote economic development. If we rush for quick success and screw up the credibility of paper money in people's hearts in this most critical first step, all subsequent monetary policies will also be stillborn.
As Roland had predicted, on the first day of the banknote's release, there was an uproar in the Far East, with almost everyone questioning why this little piece of paper was worth real money. On a normal trajectory, skepticism will turn into a boycott, and even a backlash against the government that will shake the foundations of the nascent nation. In fact, the news of the issuance of silver money in the Far East has spread beyond the borders of the country, and the old powers, led by the Assanian Empire, are paying close attention to this matter, and many of them are watching the show, waiting for the Kolas government to run wild on the road to death.
However, the next development of events was a big surprise: the complaints of the Far Easterners were quickly subsided, and most of them chose to accept the reality and calmly exchanged the silver coins for silver notes.
This unreasonable situation really surprised the "friendly countries", from Fizhen, Hailan, Pauswa, Canaan, and even the Asshan Empire, the decision-makers of various countries discussed the reasons for this either openly or privately, but there was no consensus. It was not until the end of April that silver coins in the Far East were basically extinct, and silver banknotes were widely recognized in circulation, and the Central Bank of the Far East, together with the Ministry of Finance, published a summary report on the issuance of silver banknotes, and the mystery was revealed.
In this report, written by Roland himself, it is clearly pointed out that the unique national economic structure of the Kingdom of Kolas is the key guarantee for the smooth issuance of silver banknotes.
The economic structure of the Far East is typical of state monopoly capitalism. If the country is compared to the human body, the central government is compared to the brain, and the governments, churches, schools, and hospitals at all levels that penetrate into cities, towns, townships, and villages are like the bones that support the body; The central bank is like the heart, and together with the three major policy banks under the central bank, the national sovereign wealth foundation, the Kolas family foundation, and more than 100 commercial banks and financial institutions supervised by the central bank, it forms a circular network throughout the country, pumping blood called "money" to the limbs.