Bretton Woods Beginnings explores the landmark 1944 Bretton Woods Conference, a pivotal moment that reshaped the global financial system after World War II. This book examines how the conference led to the creation of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank, institutions designed to foster economic stability and development. It also delves into the establishment of fixed exchange rates, a system intended to prevent the volatile currency fluctuations that plagued the interwar period. Understanding Bretton Woods provides crucial insights into contemporary global finance, trade relations, and the ongoing debates surrounding international monetary policy. The book argues that the Bretton Woods system, while aiming for post-war economic stability, also embedded power dynamics that continue to influence the world economy. For instance, the dominance of the U.S. dollar as the reserve currency reflected America's economic strength at the time, but also created imbalances. The book progresses chronologically, beginning with the pre-war landscape and the need for a new monetary order, then analyzing the key players, agreements, and the system's implementation, successes, and eventual collapse. It adopts a critical perspective, questioning the system's actual achievements and distributional effects on different countries.
