"[A] magnificent history of money and finance."—New York Times Book
Review "Convincingly makes the case that finance is a change-maker of
change-makers."—Financial Times In the aftermath of recent financial
crises, it's easy to see finance as a wrecking ball: something that
destroys fortunes and jobs, and undermines governments and banks. In
Money Changes Everything, leading financial historian William
Goetzmann argues the exact opposite—that the development of finance
has made the growth of civilizations possible. Goetzmann explains that
finance is a time machine, a technology that allows us to move value
forward and backward through time; and that this innovation has
changed the very way we think about and plan for the future. He shows
how finance was present at key moments in history: driving the
invention of writing in ancient Mesopotamia, spurring the classical
civilizations of Greece and Rome to become great empires, determining
the rise and fall of dynasties in imperial China, and underwriting the
trade expeditions that led Europeans to the New World. He also
demonstrates how the apparatus we associate with a modern
economy—stock markets, lines of credit, complex financial products,
and international trade—were repeatedly developed, forgotten, and
reinvented over the course of human history. Exploring the critical
role of finance over the millennia, and around the world, Goetzmann
details how wondrous financial technologies and institutions—money,
bonds, banks, corporations, and more—have helped urban centers to
expand and cultures to flourish. And it's not done reshaping our
lives, as Goetzmann considers the challenges we face in the future,
such as how to use the power of finance to care for an aging and
expanding population. Money Changes Everything presents a fascinating
look into the way that finance has steered the course of history.
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Produktdetaljer
ISBN
9781400888719
Publisert
2017
Utgiver
Vendor
Princeton University Press
Språk
Product language
Engelsk
Format
Product format
Digital bok
Forfatter