Crypto Won’t Solve Our Problems — We Need to Democratize Money
Bitcoin was not just a consequence of public disillusionment during the 2008 financial crisis — it was also a response to neoliberal monetary policies that saw money as somehow above politics. But questions about monetary policy are questions about democracy.
Cryptocurrencies were originally presented as the money of the future, not as speculative assets. (Chesnot / Getty Images)
Cryptocurrency’s champions herald the technology as an escape from the failures of capitalist economics. In doing so, they recognize a reality that has long been hidden by central banks and international institutions: money is deeply political. The repoliticization of money since the 2008 financial crisis has provided the Left an opportunity to reimagine democratic alternatives to our modern economic systems.
In a recent interview on The Dig podcast, Daniel Denvir spoke with Stefan Eich, an assistant professor at Georgetown University and author of The Currency of Politics: The Political Theory of Money From Aristotle to Keynes. Eich details the depoliticization of money to explain Bitcoin’s rise and propose alternative directions for the Left. The transcript has been edited for length and clarity.
Daniel Denvir
What is cryptocurrency, and is it actually currency?
Stefan Eich
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