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However, because the depositor can ask for the money back, banks have to maintain minimum reserves to service customer needs. If the reserve requirement is 10% then, in the earlier example, the bank can lend $90 and thus the money supply increases by only $90. The reserve requirement therefore acts as a limit on this multiplier effect.
An easy money policy is a monetary policy that increases the money supply usually by lowering interest rates. [1] It occurs when a country's central bank decides to allow new cash flows into the banking system. Since interest rates are lower, it is easier for banks and lenders to loan money, thus likely leading to increased economic growth. [2]
McLeay et al. note that in the current system, "Whenever a bank makes a loan, it simultaneously creates a matching deposit in the borrower's bank account, thereby creating new money." [14] In contrast, Sigurjonsson explains that full-reserve banking, "transfers the power to create money from commercial banks" to the central bank. [15]
The acceptance and value of commercial bank money is based on the fact that it can be exchanged freely at a commercial bank for central bank money. [20] [21] The actual increase in the money supply through this process may be lower, as (at each step) banks may choose to hold reserves in excess of the statutory minimum, borrowers may let some ...
Since the increase in bank reserves may not immediately increase the money supply if held as excess reserves, the increased reserves create the danger that inflation may eventually result when the reserves are loaned out. [111] QE benefits debtors; since the interest rate has fallen, there is less money to be repaid.
Central banks may also affect the money supply more directly by engaging in various open market operations. [21] They can increase the money supply by purchasing government securities, such as government bonds or treasury bills. This increases the liquidity in the banking system by converting the illiquid securities of commercial banks into ...
Consequently, the importance of the money supply as a guide for the conduct of monetary policy has diminished over time, [65] and after the 1980s central banks have shifted away from policies that focus on money supply targeting. Today, it is widely considered a weak policy, because it is not stably related to the growth of real output.
The Federal Reserve created the discount window to help banks avoid bank runs. Because the rate was below market, the Fed discouraged its use, causing a stigma against companies that did borrow from the window. In 2003 the Fed raised the rate to make using the window less appealing. [1]