The History of Exchange Rate Arrangements

Abstract

In Chapters 4 and 5 we examined exchange rate arrangements from theoretical and practical perspectives. Most of these exchange rate arrangements have been experimented with in various shapes and forms in the past 150 years or so as the world went through various international monetary systems. The international monetary system refers to the framework of rules, regulations and conventions that govern the financial relations between countries. The importance of the international monetary system is implied by Adam Smith’s (1776) description of it as the ‘Great Wheel’ because ‘when it does not turn well it adversely affects the welfare of nations’.