Barry Eichengreen

Golden Fetters; international monetary history

Professor of Economics and Political Science at UC Berkeley, Eichengreen has spent decades studying international monetary systems, exchange-rate regimes, and financial crises. His book 'Golden Fetters' (1992) established the scholarly consensus that adherence to the gold standard was the primary mechanism spreading the Great Depression across countries. He has also written widely on the euro, capital flows, and the dollar's reserve-currency status.