Central Banking in the Twentieth Century

John Singleton is Reader in Economic History at Victoria University of Wellington. His previous publications include Innovation and Independence: The Reserve Bank of New Zealand, 1973–2002 (2006).

• 1. A beginner's guide to central banking; 2. Very boring guys?; 3. Wind in the willows: the small world of central banking c.1900; 4. Something for everyone: new central banks, 1900–39; 5. A series of disasters: central banking, 1914–39; 6. The mysteries of central bank cooperation; 7. The first central banking revolution; 8. No time for cosmic thinkers: central banking in the 'Keynesian' era; 9. Rekindling central bank cooperation in the Bretton Woods era; 10. The goose that lays the golden egg: central banking in developing countries; 11. The horse of inflation; 12. The second central banking revolution: independence and accountability; 13. Reputations at stake: financial deregulation and instability; 14. Inflation targeting: the Holy Grail?; 15. The long march to European monetary integration; 16. A world with half a million central bankers.

'A worldwide journey into the policies and politics of central banks in the twentieth century. Clear, informed and wide ranging, Singleton's book is an essential historical reflection on this highly topical issue.' Youssef Cassis, University of Geneva and Visiting Research Fellow in the Business History Unit, London School of Economics