Bretton Woods and the Future of Money

In Bretton Woods, New Hampshire, today’s foremost economists, investors, academics and thinkers will gather for three days in August to answer the question: What is the future of money?

article-image
share

key takeaways

  • In 1944, the most powerful countries in the world gathered in a small hotel in sleepy Bretton Woods, New Hampshire, to create a new monetary system for the world
  • While the Bretton Woods system has long been discarded, today we find ourselves in a similar position as the allied nations did back then.

In 1944, the most powerful countries in the world gathered in a small hotel in sleepy Bretton Woods, New Hampshire.

World War II was drawing to a close, and the Allies had come together for one purpose:

Creating a new monetary system for a new world.

After 22 days of intense deliberation, the conference settled on a monetary system with the US dollar at the center.

The Allies also created the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank to uphold global financial security and oversee fair trade practices.

While the Bretton Woods system has long been discarded, today we find ourselves in a similar position as the allied nations did back then.

Our monetary system is not working.

Governments around the world are in a race to the bottom to debase their currencies. Trade wars are breaking out. Inequality is worse than it has ever been.

The end of the US dollar’s status as reserve currency is no longer a question of if, but of when.

So now the question is: What is the future of money?

During a conference hosted by Blockworks at the very same historic hotel in Bretton Woods, today’s foremost economists, investors, academics and thinkers will gather for three days and attempt to answer that question and consider:

  • The history of money itself
  • An overview of the short- and long-term debt cycles
  • Today’s financial plumbing
  • The complicated relationship between the US and China
  • Bitcoin and the promise of a new monetary system

It has never been more important to ask these questions than it is today. Be part of the conversation and the solution. Join us for Bretton Woods: The Realignment (August 11-13, 2021). Apply to attend here.

Tags

Upcoming Events

Javits Center North | 445 11th Ave

Tues - Thurs, March 18 - 20, 2025

Blockworks’ Digital Asset Summit (DAS) will feature conversations between the builders, allocators, and legislators who will shape the trajectory of the digital asset ecosystem in the US and abroad.

recent research

Research

article-image

Jack explored the various AI and memecoin projects that have sprung up over the past month

article-image

If gold remains steady today, a single move from bitcoin to $98,500 would do it

article-image

Revenue estimates for the third quarter come in at $33 billion, which would be an 83% increase from the prior year

article-image

Senator Cynthia Lummis hopes a US strategic bitcoin reserve can be teed up for “adoption in 2025”

article-image

As EIP-4844 “blobs” transform the economics of Ethereum layer-2s, a growing debate pits long-term scalability against immediate ETH value

article-image

Prosecutors argued that FTX co-founder Gary Wang cooperated in their case against former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried