The Euro : a chartalist critique

The aim of this article is to develop a Chartalist critique of the prevailing economic theories that have informed the original design of the Eurosystem. In order to understand the structural dynamics of the current crisis, it is necessary to examine the longstanding internal contradictions that the system has inherited from its inception under the Maastricht Treaty of 1992 and the neoliberal strategy, which has governed its evolution. In its bare essentials, the euro lacks the backing of a coherent sovereign power. More specifically, the article argues that this national/supranational dichotomy prevents a more unified response to the current debt crises engulfing the peripheral countries of the Eurozone.