The People’s Money: How China Is Building a Global Currency

“Money is the game changer of our time,” says economist Subacchi in this accessible introduction to and critique of China’s efforts to strengthen its currency. Drawing on her research and role as director of international research at the Royal College of International Affairs in London, Subacchi lays out the story of the renminbi in intentionally plain language so as to appeal to general readers who are interested in international economics as well as an academic audience. In the first several chapters, Subacchi describes how capital movements have driven China’s transformation in the last 20 years, what it takes for a currency to become “international money,” and the effects of living with a currency that lacks international status. By the middle of the work, she asks the key question: why isn’t China’s renminbi treated as an international currency? She also analyzes Japan’s experience with currency internationalization and discusses the importance of a well-developed financial center with good infrastructure. Subacchi argues for reforms and policies to push the renminbi’s use while acknowledging that China’s ambitions to raise its status as an international currency are still unfulfilled. Given the decision, effective on October 1 2016, to enter the renminbi into the International Monetary Fund’s basket of reserve currencies, this work is a timely , relevant, and fascinating read. (Nov.)