Ruth Judson is a monetary economist, economic historian, and veteran of the Federal Reserve Board of Governors. In Ruth's first appearance on the show she discusses her career at the Fed, field trips tracking counterfeit dollars around the global, how we know how much currency is held overseas, why money doesn't matter anymore, the problem with cashless societies, how to understand TIC data, the promise of dollar backed stablecoins, and much more.

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Recorded on March 4th, 2026

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Timestamps

00:00:00 - Intro

00:01:13 - Ruth at the Fed

00:08:09 - Currency

00:31:29 - Counterfeits

00:39:00 - TIC Data and Safe Assets

00:44:18 - Dollar-Based Stablecoins

00:49:55 - Outro

Bill Nelson is a chief research officer and chief economist at the Bank Policy Institute. In Bill's 10th appearance on the show he discusses his infamous email list, the ratchet effect from QE, his congressional testimony, the BPI's Bank Treasurers Survey, how he thinks the Fed should shrink the balance sheet, whether the Fed is profitable, and much more.

Watch the full length video on our new YouTube Channel!

Check out the transcript for this week's episode, now with links.

Recorded on March 3rd, 2026

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Timestamps

00:00:00 - Intro

00:02:00 - Quantitative Easing Ratchet Effect

00:16:31 - Bill's Congressional Testimony

00:31:12 - BPI's Bank Treasurers Survey

00:37:37 - How To Shrink the Balance Sheet

00:48:44 - The Fed's Profits

00:54:50 - Outro

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Neha Narula is the director of the Digital Currency Initiative which is based out of the Media Lab at MIT. Anders Brownworth is veteran software engineer in the crypto space and is a Senior Research Advisor at DCI. Daniel Aronoff is Research Affiliate in the MIT Department of Economics and a Collaborator at DCI. Neha, Anders, and Daniel join the show to discuss their work at DCI, the current state of stablecoins, their paper on the hidden plumbing of stablecoins, the basic mechanics of stablecoins, the technical and operational risks of stablecoins, the implications for the treasury market, interoperability between blockchains, and much more.

Check out the transcript for this week's episode, now with links.

Recorded on February 27th, 2026

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Follow David Beckworth on X: @DavidBeckworth

Follow Neha Narula on X: @Neha

Follow Anders Brownworth on X: @Anders94

Follow Daniel Aronoff on X: @DanAronoff

Follow the show on X: @Macro_Musings

Check out our Macro Musings merch!

Timestamps

00:00:00 - Intro

00:01:41 - Background of the Group

00:03:11 - Digital Currency Initiative

00:05:36 - State of Stablecoins

00:10:42 - Hidden Plumbing of Stablecoins

00:15:42 - Basic Mechanics of Stablecoins

00:26:07 - Technical and Operational Risks of Stablecoins

00:39:09 - Implications for the Treasury Market

00:48:18 - Business Model of Stablecoins

00:49:24 - Interoperability Between Blockchains

00:52:53 - What's the Deal with Tether?

00:56:23 - Outro