Money system

Two types of monetary systems are distinguished: metallic circulation systems and monetary circulation systems when gold and silver are supplanted from circulation by irreplaceable credit and paper money. Systems of metallic monetary circulation, in turn, are divided into bimetallic and monometallic systems. Bimetallic are monetary systems in which the state legislates the role of the universal equivalent (that is, money ) for two noble metals - gold and silver . At the same time, free minting of coins from these metals and their unlimited circulation are carried out. In monometallism, the universal equivalent is one money metal (usually one of the three is gold, silver or copper). At the same time, other banknotes function in money circulation: banknotes , treasury bills , loose change . These banknotes are freely exchanged for the main monetary metal (gold, silver or copper).

The greatest distribution in the world has received gold monometallism. There are three types of gold monometallism: gold coin, gold bullion and gold exchange standards.

Under gold-coin monometallism (which existed in Russia until 1914-1918), the prices of goods are calculated in gold, full-fledged gold coins function in the domestic circulation of the country, gold performs all the functions of money. Free coinage of gold coins is made; all banknotes (banknotes, change coins) are freely exchanged for gold; free export and import of gold and the functioning of free gold markets are allowed.

After the First World War, instead of gold coin monometallism, gold bullion and gold currency (gold exchange) types of monometallism were installed. Under the gold bullion standard, banknotes and other money are exchanged only for bars weighing 12.5 kg; in the case of gold exchange, the exchange of banknotes and other money began to be carried out in the currency of the mottos of countries where exchange for gold bullion was permitted. After 1929-1933 all forms of gold monometallism were eliminated. After the Second World War, at the conference in Bretton Woods (USA) in 1944, the so-called Bretton Woods monetary system was formed , characterized by the following features: gold is forced out of free circulation and acts only as a means of final settlement between countries; along with gold, the international currency and reserve currency are the dollar (USA) and pound sterling (Great Britain); only reserve currencies are exchanged for gold at the established ratio, as well as in free gold markets; interstate regulation of currency relations is carried out by the IMF (International Monetary Fund). The Bretton Woods monetary system represented the dollar-based system of international gold exchange monometallism.

In the 70s. XX century due to the reduction of gold reserves in the United States, this system crashed. In 1976, the Bretton Woods monetary system was replaced by the Jamaican monetary system , drawn up by the Agreement of the IMF member countries (Jamaica) in 1976 and ratified by the IMF member countries in 1978.

According to the Jamaican currency system , special drawing rights (SDRs) were declared world money, which became an international monetary unit. At the same time, the dollar has retained an important place in international payments and foreign exchange reserves of other countries. In addition, the demonetization of gold , that is, the loss of gold monetary functions, was legally completed. At the same time, gold remains the state’s reserve, it is necessary for the purchase of foreign currency.

There is currently no metal circulation in any country; The main types of banknotes are bank credit cards (banknotes), government money (treasury tickets) and loose change.

The official monetary unit of Russia is the ruble . The official exchange rate of the ruble against foreign monetary currencies is determined by the Central Bank on the basis of exchange quotations and published in print.

In Russia, cash (banknotes and coins) and non-cash money (in the form of funds in accounts with credit institutions) function. The Bank of Russia has the exclusive right to issue cash , organize its circulation and withdrawal in Russia .

• International currency system
• Theory of money
• Monetarism
• Money supply

• The monetary system / L. N. Krasavina , M. S. Lyubsky // Big Russian Encyclopedia : [in 35 vol.] / Ch. ed. Yu.S. Osipov . - M .: Great Russian Encyclopedia, 2004—2017.