The Rentenmark - an idea whose time has come back

The financial crisis which the epidemic is bringing in its wake will require drastic measures, including the injection of huge amounts of money. The Rentenmark is the model. This is the currency that was introduced in Germany in 1923 to put an end to the hyperinflation of the previous year. It was based on the yield from a land value tax. The concept of a currency based on the yield from a land value tax cannot be faulted. Land value is solely due to the presence and activities of the government, paid for out of taxation. The primary purpose of government-issued currency is for the payment of taxes (“render unto Caesar”). Its use as a medium of exchange is secondary. The Rentenmark completes a cycle which is otherwise dangerously open. Even gold is subject to inflation risk.

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