Argentina's parallel currency : the economy of the poor / / by Georgina M. Gmez

• Record Nr.: UNINA9910825816503321
• Autore: Gmez Georgina
• Pubbl/distr/stampa: London, : Pickering & Chatto, 2009
• ISBN: 1-315-65353-2; 1-317-31636-3; 1-282-12546-X; 9786612125461; 1-85196-693-5
• Edizione: [1st ed.]
• Descrizione fisica: 1 online resource (254 pages) : digital, PDF file(s)
• Collana: Financial history ; ; no. 11
• Disciplina: 332.4982
• Soggetti: Local exchange trading systems - Argentina; Barter - Argentina; Argentina Economic conditions 1983-
• Lingua di pubblicazione: Inglese
• Formato: Materiale a stampa
• Livello bibliografico: Monografia
• Note generali: Title from publisher's bibliographic system (viewed on 08 Oct 2015).
• Nota di bibliografia: Includes bibliographical references (p. 227-246) and index.
• Nota di contenuto: Economic life as an Insttitutional process -- Perspectives on complementary currency systems -- The political and economic context in Argentina -- Launching the club de Trueque -- From club de Truque to network -- Governance of the networks -- Smaller scale Trueque -- Replacing money for economic development.
• Sommario/riassunto: The story of the <i>Red de Trueque</i> in Argentina (RT) exposes the problems of creating a grassroots market system parallel and complementary to the official economy. The RT was launched in 1995 by a group of environmentalists who exchanged goods and services at their own 'market' using a system of mutual credit. The group grew and they printed fiat money to facilitate exchange. The scheme was rapidly replicated across Argentina as the country's official economy faced meltdown. At its peak, the RT had 2.5 million participants and 4,700 marketplaces. However, although the organisers set codes of conduct and bodies to enforce them, it was impossible to deal with such a large self-regulated market and it collapsed to about a tenth of its peak size in a matter of months.<br>This is the first book in English to analyse ; the rise and fall of RT. Gomez advances institutional theory by exploring how structural reforms disrupt institutions, here resulting in segments of unstable and uncertain economic action within the social structure. She identifies rules of governance and sustainability for institutional settings in which compliance is voluntary and state regulation is minimal. Finally, Gomez conceptualizes the economy of the poor and disenfranchised as an economic area driven by the need to survive, thus structured by specific institutions different to those guiding the economic action of the non-poor.