The Mystery of Banking

In a brilliant and interesting manner, Murray starts off with some basic economic science concepts, which he then proceeds into explaining the theory of operation behind this monster that is now revealing itself to all of us in great confusion. This book was written in the early 80's and I bet anyone who had read this book back then is not surprised by the current financial crisis. Some of the main questions he explores are: What is money? What is the money supply and how much of it do we really need? How do modern commercial banks work? What is the purpose of the central bank and how does it operate? And how did all of this evolve into the current system that we have today, which itself was only possible with the power of government. Murray also explains the nature of the business cycle(boom and bust), and how the business cycle is a direct result of the inherent nature of the banking system, and not the result of free markets or capitalism like everyone assumes. Murray filters out all of the financial and economic jargon used in the media that only confuse the wide public, as well as many economists themselves. I think most readers will be shocked to learn how a modern bank works and will immediately feel the urge and need to spread the information to others. I think many bankers themselves will be shocked to learn how the broad theory of operation itself is actually hidden from the common bank employee. In the context of the current financial turmoil, the reader will immediately grasp the vast ignorance among the public, politicians, and many so called experts. This is simply a must read for the ordinary person, the banker, as well for the professional economist.

"The Mystery of Banking" by Murray Rothbard is now back in print! You can get a copy for $18 at the "Ludwig Von Mises Institute" website. You can also download for free at the "Ludwig Von Mises Institute" website, why pay the ourageous price of $248 dollars?

Murray Rothbard writes clearly and yet with a technician's precise knowledge of the operation of money and banking. This book should be read by any who truly desire to understand these important aspects of the ecoonomy. And, oh, by the way, you don't really have to fork over $98 bucks for this important book. Resourceful readers can locate it for free online. Who says there's no such thing as a free lunch?

I just finished reading this book and found that it filled in many inconsistencies that I have noted in my mainstream economic study. The author explains clearly and concisely the origins of and money and its importance to any economic system. He proceeds to describe the evolution of banking to its current inflationary state. He clearly shows that this inflationary states results from a combination of fractional reserve banking, the government's grant of monopoly powers through a cental bank (the U.S. Federal Reserve in the case of the U.S.), and the central banks open market operations to manipulate bank reserves (e.g., monetizing debt). Finally, Rothbard makes it clear that the banking industry's inflationary policies are beneficial to the banking industry itself and leave the reader no doubt that this industry has a vested interest in the status-quo.

I found this book to be the most interesting and revealing book I have ever read about the banking system and the Federal Reserve. Rothbard has a very different perspective than most conventional economists, but his explanations are very clear and compelling. He explains how fractional reserve banking makes banks inherently prone to bankruptcy, how the Federal Reserve and other central banks create inflation, and how money has evolved and been debased. Gene Epstein, the Barron's columnist, recently recommended The Mystery of Banking as the best book to read for anyone interested in understanding how our banking system works.