Working Paper
Dollarization Waves: New Evidence from a Comprehensive International Bond Database
Abstract: We investigate how the U.S. dollar's prominence in the denomination of international debt securities has evolved in recent decades, using a comprehensive global dataset with far more extensive coverage than datasets used in prior literature. We find no monotonic dollarization or de-dollarization trend; instead, the dollar's share exhibits a wavelike pattern. We document three dollarization waves since the 1960s. The last wave, following the global financial crisis, lifted the dollar's share nearly back to its level at the euro's launch in 2000. Our findings are robust to composition and currency valuation effects as well as alternative data definitions.
JEL Classification: F30; F41; G15;
https://doi.org/10.17016/IFDP.2025.1429
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Bibliographic Information
Provider: Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (U.S.)
Part of Series: International Finance Discussion Papers
Publication Date: 2025-12-16
Number: 1429