ABSTRACT
The subject of key currencies would seem to be more closely associated with the work of John H. Williams than with Herbert Giersch. It is nonetheless an appropriate subject for this volume since Professor Giersch is a key economist in a key country with what may well be the next key currency. 1 propose in this essay to discuss the question of whether the arrangements for international money should be organised hierarchically, with a single key currency standing at the apex of a world system – whether two or more such currencies can serve effectively if no single currency stands out following the weakening of the dollar – and to explore a bit of European financial history in search of insights, analogies or contrasts with the present.
