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Une colonne VoxEU co-écrite par Stefano Ugolini : "Loose monetary policy, dollar depreciation, and debt sustainability"

Publié le 5 septembre 2025 Mis à jour le 5 juin 2026
Date(s)

le 5 septembre 2025

Loose monetary policy, dollar depreciation, and debt sustainability: Do not forget Venice
Donato Masciandaro, Davide Romelli, Stefano Ugolini
 
History suggests that using lax monetary policy and a weaker currency to address debt sustainability is a dangerous game. This column revisits a unique early experiment with a managed float of state-issued money in Venice between 1619 and 1666. Newly digitised exchange rate data show that even for a government with a strong fiscal reputation, credibility alone was not enough to preserve currency stability when fiscal and monetary policies lacked time consistency. The Venetian case offers a cautionary lesson for today: reputation cannot indefinitely shield an international currency from the risks of fiscal dominance.