There is still ongoing controversy over the origins of money and its underlying philosophy.
More than 3,000 years have passed since human society transitioned from a barter economy to a monetary economy, yet the mystery surrounding its fundamentals remains unsolved.
The puzzle, in a word, depends on whether you view money as a thing or not.
In the West, money is seen as 'an object that expresses economic value.'
On the other hand, in the East, it is seen as 'a promise made by members of society (or the highest authority) to express the price of other goods.'
Kindleberger, an economic historian, interprets this difference in thinking between the East and the West as a question of 'private goods or public goods.'
If you only see money as a material thing, then there is undoubtedly ownership of all money.
However, if we view money as a social system (e.g., a constitution) created through the agreement of members of society, then money is the common property of everyone.
Money as a material and money as a social system.
Or money as a private good and money as a public good.
These are undoubtedly incompatible concepts.
But the whole mystery begins with the fact that money possesses incompatible properties.

--- p.41-42

How should the value of money be maintained? Should we follow the quantity theory of money or not? Should we follow the path of Alexander the Great or Henry VIII? The answer to these questions ultimately depends on how we view the world and humanity.
Trust in the value of money must be maintained.
However, in unprecedented situations like the Great Depression, the global financial crisis, and the COVID-19 crisis, we also need to be considerate and try to ease the pain and wipe away the tears of those who have lost their jobs and been forced from their homes.
After experiencing both the intended and unintended corruption of money (deviation) over the past several thousand years, humanity has reached a tentative conclusion.
It is a principle that allows experts with a warm and upright philosophy to step away from those in power and discuss the value of money with a long-term perspective.
This wisdom contained in the central banking system is called 'central bank independence.'
--- p.57-58

With the onset of the Renaissance, banking finally entered the institutional system.
But banks remained objects of hatred.
Furthermore, he became the people's arch-villain.
This is because they issued banknotes with no maturity date and then went bankrupt or were mobilized for speculation, completely ruining the economy of a country (John Law's Royal Bank).
There were also instances of misunderstandings as the power grew to the point where the rulers felt threatened (Biddle's Second Bank of the United States).
Then, towards the end of the 19th century, it took on the role of a bank that even the government could not do (the Bank of England).
Looking at this, it seems that banks have both the devil and the angel aspects.
We've looked into this at length, but the identity of the bank is something we still don't know the answer to.
What is a bank? And what is a central bank?
--- p.235-236

The origins of banking are the secretive money lending businesses.
Initially, it was monopolized by Jews, but as it became known that the business was very profitable, ordinary citizens from all countries also entered the moneylending business just before the Renaissance.
An example is the Medici family, who set up tables on the street and solicited customers.
What made the Medici family's business different from that of the Jews before them was that it was international.
The business they initially put forward on the surface was trade and distribution.
Through a vast business network, they maintained trade as their main business, while secretly and cunningly conducting the business of receiving and receiving money as a side business.
The secret was the receipt of discretionary deposits, and the clever was the discounting of foreign currency-denominated dry bills.
The discretionary deposit window was open only to the ruling class, including foreign rulers, nobles, and clergy.
Foreign currency denominated dry bills are designed to pass on the interest owed to borrowers who discount the bills to the exchange rate.
By doing so, it was possible to operate shadow banking without interest on the surface.
--- p.246-247

There is no definitive answer as to what moral code central banks should adhere to.
After the global financial crisis, central banks stepped in to protect the financial system, but the question, “Who will protect the protectors?” is a quote from the ancient Roman poet Juvenal.
It is a lament about a question for which one does not know the answer.
If you dig deep into the financial world, you'll find gaps that could be exploited.
Despite its long history, it is known that humanity knows little about the nature of money and banking.
The global financial crisis and the COVID-19 crisis were the catalysts.
It's hard to say with certainty whether negative interest rates are good for the economy or whether Bitcoin is even a currency.
There are only various claims and speculations running wild.
However, there is no need to despair about the errors and limitations of existing theories.
The important thing is to start from the bottom again.
If you dig deep into the depths, an endless world of unknowns will unfold before you.
We will see the true face of money and banks that we never knew existed, and among them will be solutions to overcome the crisis.
--- p.261-262

Today, opinions on Hjalmar Schacht are sharply divided.
There are two types of evaluations: 'a vicious racist who collaborated with the Nazis' and 'a bold liberal who resisted the Nazis.'
However, everyone agrees that Hjalmar Schacht was a great financial genius.
He was a very creative person.
Schacht was the father of the Bank for International Settlements (BIS). When he founded the BIS, he proposed to the Allies the creation of a new international monetary unit.
At the time, no one understood the idea, but when Keynes of Britain took it over and created the International Monetary Fund (IMF), he proposed the creation of an international currency called the 'Bankor'.


And in 1969, it was finally realized as the 'Special Drawing Right (SDR),' the origin of today's virtual currency, which exists only as a unit of account without a physical entity.
Bankers are often portrayed as clumsy individuals who try to stick to given rules.
Schacht is the one who clearly broke that stereotype.
His thoughts and actions were so unconventional that not only his contemporaries but also his descendants found it difficult to follow him.
But reality did not stray far from Schacht's ideas.
The COVID-19 crisis has caused the world to frantically spend money and increase fiscal deficits.
It's a situation similar to fighting a world war.
In these times of emergency, unprecedented boldness, decisiveness, and action are needed.

--- p.410-411