Open letter to Javier Milei – a proposal for a monetary reform for Argentina

Dear Mr Milei,

congratulations on your victory! When socialists are done with a country’s economy, liberals will be given an chance to fix it.

As these opportunities only rise every few decades, I sincerely hope you seize this moment, start from a clean slate and go all in:

First, default on all sovereign debt. The people of Argentina owe nothing to the institutions that have borrowed to the socialists.

Second, in order to curb inflation, either dollarize or transfer to a gold standard. Dollarization is easier in the short run, a gold standard would be better in the long run (as ultimately the dollar will fail also). The selected currency would act as the primary store of value in Argentina.

Third, adapt a citizen dividend with a digital peso. This would be an adaptation of Silvio Gesell’s Freigeld and Friedman’s service vouchers, which could not transferred from one citizen to another, converted to another currency or to purchase anything that stores value. The digital peso could only be used to purchase (public) services, and it’s supply would be the only monetary tool in the toolbox of the central bank of Argentina.

Fourth, adapt the personal liability of bankers which is in use in Brazil. Banking in Argentina would operate with either the dollar or a gold standard based currency, but you do want to curb excess risk taking to ensure a stable banking system.

Sincerely yours,
Amos Ahola
Liberal Party of Finland