The Case Against the Fed

Author	Murray N. Rothbard
Country	United States
Language	English
Subject	Money, Banking
Publisher	Ludwig von Mises Institute
Publication date	1994
Media type	Paperback
Pages	158
ISBN	978-0-945466-17-8
OCLC	32938131
Dewey Decimal	332.1/1/0973 21
LC Class	HG2565 .R67 1994

The Case Against the Fed is a 1994 book by Murray N. Rothbard criticising the United States Federal Reserve, fractional reserve banking, and central banks in general.^[1] It details a history of fractional reserve banking and the influence that bankers have had on monetary policy over the last few centuries.

Rothbard argues that the claim that the Federal Reserve is designed to fight inflation is sophistry, that price inflation is caused only by an increase in the money supply, and that since only banks increase the money supply, then banks, including the Federal Reserve, are the only source of inflation. He writes: "Unlike the days of the gold standard, it is impossible for the Federal Reserve to go bankrupt; it holds the legal monopoly of counterfeiting (of creating money out of thin air) in the entire country. . . . Neat trick if you can get away with it!"^[2]

Publishing History

In English

• The Case Against the Fed. Alabama: Mises Institute, 1994; ISBN 978-0-945466-17-8

In Portuguese

• Pelo fim do Banco Central. Rio de Janeiro: Editora Konkin, 2022;