How the world's money
actually works.

The macro companion to PlainMoney.

Exchange rates and central-bank decisions as they happen. The gold standard to Bretton Woods to today's floating-fiat system — and the alternatives: hawala, mobile money, stablecoins, CBDCs. Formal models and the literature graduate finance programs assign. One body of content, three depth layers, every claim traced to the IMF, World Bank, BIS or a central bank — never a headline.

App Store — coming soon Google Play — coming soon

Both apps are in review with Apple and Google — launching soon.

359
Sourced pages
818
Cited sources
100
Glossary terms
20
Modules of coverage
7
Live official series
See it in action

A short page, then as deep as you want to go

Real screens from the app — search or ask in plain language, then drill into Applied practice and Research literature without ever losing your place.

Home screen with search, live signal cards, and need-based entry points
Search or ask, in plain language
A short Essentials topic page with sourced facts and drill-down links
Short pages, sourced facts
On-device AI answering a question, grounded in the app's own sourced pages
Ask a model — entirely on-device
A comparison page for central bank digital currencies across jurisdictions
Even-handed on crypto, gold and CBDCs
The Pro paywall unlocking Applied and Research depth
Applied & Research with Pro
Free, interactive, on the web

Watch a real payment cross the world

IMF, World Bank, BIS, the U.S. Treasury, the Federal Reserve, the ECB, SWIFT, correspondent banks, and the settlement systems that actually move value — one network diagram, with a step-by-step simulation of a real international payment moving through it.

Follow the payment →
One page, three depths

Never a "lite" version — just how deep you go

The same topic page serves a curious reader, a working professional, and a graduate researcher. No tab is ever labeled by who you are — only by how deep the content underneath it goes.

Essentials

Free, on every page, forever

The plain-language explanation, why it matters to your own finances, and the two or three sources that back it — always free, no account needed.

Free
Applied

The actual mechanism

How practitioners and policymakers actually use it, live data where an official series exists, the governing documents, and worked examples.

Global Monetary Systems Pro
Research

Formal models & literature

Derivations, the empirical literature, data methodology, open debates — the readings a graduate finance program actually assigns.

Global Monetary Systems Pro

Pro is one subscription, $9.99/month, no free trial — it unlocks Applied and Research on every page in the app. What's included →

Features

Built to be a working reference, not a news feed

For the general public, working professionals and policymakers, and graduate students and faculty — one body of content, never a simplified spin-off.

📈

Live official data

Exchange rates, policy rates, and inflation prints — refreshed on demand from the IMF, World Bank, BIS, ECB and national central banks. Keyless, official APIs only.

🔖

Every claim cited

Citations are tappable and open in-app at full width, 85% height, and return you to exactly where you were. Never a bare footnote.

🌐

History & the alternatives

Barter to the classical gold standard, Bretton Woods to the floating era — plus hawala, mobile money, community currencies, stablecoins, DeFi and CBDCs.

🧠

Ask a model, on your phone

An on-device AI answers questions grounded in the app's own sourced pages and names exactly which pages it used. Nothing you ask ever leaves your phone.

App only
⚖️

Explains, never advises

Mechanisms, cause-and-effect chains, and what has historically followed — never a tip on what to buy, sell, or invest in.

🔒

Private by design

No accounts, no bank linking, no ads, no analytics. The only network activity is data you ask it to refresh and citations you tap.

📶

100% offline capable

All 359 pages ship with the app. Read the full monetary history of the world on a plane, with zero connectivity.

🎓

Research-grade, when you need it

Formal models, the empirical literature, and data methodology — deep enough for a graduate finance program, not a summary of one.

Pro
20 modules, A to U

From "what backs a dollar" to sanctions and CBDCs

Every module free at the Essentials layer — browse the full map and a sample of real pages below.

Monetary policy tools Exchange-rate regimes Cross-border payments Central banks directory Historical systems Commodity & gold-backed money Digital & crypto-native systems Sovereign debt Crises & systemic risk Geopolitics of money Future system design
Browse all 20 modules →
100 terms, plain language

The glossary, free and public

Every term's Essentials definition — free on the web, same as in the app. Tap any term in the app for its Applied and Research definitions, with full citations.

Browse all 100 terms →
Snapshot

What the official data says right now

A periodic snapshot of the same keyless official APIs the app fetches — the app refreshes these live, on demand, plus your own FRED series if you bring a key.

SeriesValueAs of
See all live series →

No accounts. Nothing about you leaves your phone.

Global Monetary Systems is offline-first: no sign-in, no bank linking, no ads, no analytics. The only network activity is data you choose to refresh and citations you choose to tap — even the on-device AI runs and answers without a single request leaving your device.

Read the full privacy policy →

Platforms

Wherever you are

iPhone iPad Android