The idea of private coinage seems so strange today that it is worth examining carefully. We are used to thinking of coinage as a "necessity of sovereignty." Yet, after all, we are not wedded to a "royal prerogative," and it is the American concept that sovereignty rests, not in government, but in the people. How would private coinage work? In the same way as any other business, writes Murray N. Rothbard (1926–1995).

This audio Mises Daily is narrated by Floy Lilly.