Gleeson: The Moneymaker
Janet Gleeson's story of John Law bounds along in the style of a novel of derring do with gold, paper and the odd King thrown in for good measure.
There are two books that the Head of The Anti Money Laundering Network recommends to almost everyone: Lords of The Rim by Sterling Seagrave and The Moneymaker by Gleeson. Neither are about money laundering - but both provide a fascinating background to the issues he discusses.
Gleeson's book is, simply, a masterly romp through a part of history that we all think we know - but proving we know little.
Law, a Scot facing a little local difficulty in London due to his having won a duel, scampers off to France where he meets the cash-strapped king and tells him that he can increase his apparent wealth whilst not actually getting any richer. He recommends that the king withdraw gold coins, and issue what amounts to IOUs instead. Law points out that as most people will trust the King, they will accept the notes in lieu of actual gold and, people being people, not everyone will ever ask for their money back all at once. So the King can rely on his reputation to facilitate the issue of notes that exceeded the amount of gold actually in stock.
And so, thanks to John Law, the idea that we would rely on the fiction "I promise to pay the bearer" was born.
Totally recommended.
Download PDF version of this page