Introduction
On 15 August 1971, President Richard Nixon stunned the world by suspending the United States dollar’s convertibility into gold. That single act—later called the Nixon Shock—shattered the Bretton Woods framework and ushered in the age of debt‑based fiat money. In the decades that followed, unconstrained currency issuance and perpetual government borrowing fed chronic inflation, ballooning public‑sector liabilities, and the familiar boom‑and‑bust cycles that continue to erode both national and household purchasing power.
The Credit‑to‑Credit (C2C) Monetary System offers a different path. By permitting the creation of money only when it is fully backed by verifiable assets and real economic output, C2C restores the currency unit to its original purpose: a reliable claim on tangible value. This paper traces the evolution of money—from barter to Bretton Woods I, through the Nixon Shock and today’s fiat era—and shows how a full adoption of C2C under the Proposed Treaty of Nairobi (Bretton Woods 2.0) would, in effect, “reverse” the Nixon Shock, re‑establishing price stability, fiscal sovereignty, and human dignity across the globe.
From Barter to Bretton Woods I
Human exchange first took the form of barter: cattle for grain, fish for pottery. Because barter requires a “double coincidence of wants,” early societies gravitated to commodity money—shells, salt, cattle, finally precious metals—goods that were divisible, durable, and broadly accepted. By the late nineteenth century, gold had become the definitive global anchor. A pure gold standard capped the money supply at new gold discoveries, imposed strict fiscal discipline, and maintained long‑run price stability.
In 1944, as the Second World War was winding down, forty‑four nations met in New Hampshire to rebuild the post‑war economy. The resulting Bretton Woods gold‑exchange standard pegged all major currencies to the U.S. dollar and the dollar to gold at thirty‑five dollars an ounce. For a generation, fixed exchange rates supported rapid trade expansion while enshrining the dollar as the de facto reserve currency.
The Nixon Shock and the Rise of Fiat Debt
By the late 1960s the United States was running sizeable budget and trade deficits. Foreign central banks began redeeming dollars for gold, draining U.S. reserves. Facing the prospect of a run on Fort Knox, Nixon closed the gold window. Within two years the fixed‑rate system had collapsed; by 1973 currencies were left to float.
The consequences were profound. Freed from any metal constraint, governments financed deficits by issuing bonds that their own central banks willingly purchased. This marriage of fiscal and monetary expansion sparked the double‑digit inflation of the 1970s and set the stage for the modern era of compound public debt—now well above 250 percent of global GDP. Fractional‑reserve banking amplified the problem: because banks lend most of their deposits, every new loan instantly creates fresh deposit money, chaining the money supply to ever‑greater volumes of private and public debt.
The Credit‑to‑Credit Solution
The C2C Monetary System is built on four pillars.
First, every currency unit must be matched, at issuance, by audited primary reserves—gold, Central Ura, receivables, or other verifiable assets—held in custody by a national oversight body or by Central Ura Reserve Limited.
Second, fractional‑reserve lending disappears; commercial banks and monetary authorities operate on full‑reserve discipline, holding one hundred percent backing for every unit in circulation.
Third, new credit enters the economy only in proportion to documented production—goods manufactured, services rendered—so that the money supply expands in step with genuine wealth creation.
Finally, the Proposed Treaty of Nairobi creates a neutral Global Ura Authority to audit reserves, enforce rules, and coordinate cross‑border implementation, ensuring no nation can unilaterally debase its currency.
At the heart of the system is Central Ura (URU), a fully backed international reserve asset that serves as a common anchor while allowing each country to retain its own currency. Domestic units are simply re‑issued under C2C rules: no note or digital token can be created until matching assets are lodged with the national oversight entity.
The Treaty of Nairobi: A Roadmap out of Debt
The Treaty lays out a phased transition. Inclusive consultations bring governments, central banks, civil‑society leaders, and faith communities into the same room. Constitutional and statutory amendments then embed asset‑backed issuance and full‑reserve requirements in law. Independent audits verify and lock in primary reserves at the Global Ura Authority. Outstanding public bonds are exchanged, at face value, for new asset‑backed instruments—a process called Making Whole, guaranteeing that creditors suffer no loss while nations shed unaffordable debt. Finally, dual‑circulation periods, nationwide education campaigns, and digital‑ledger infrastructure smooth the rollout of the new money.
Why “Reverse” the Nixon Shock?
Restoring asset‑backed discipline produces cascading benefits.
Globally it damps systemic risk, tames inflation, and ends the cycle of bail‑outs. Exchange‑rate stability lowers hedging costs and levels the trading field.
Nationally governments reclaim fiscal space once squandered on interest, directing funds to health, education, and green infrastructure. Stable, asset‑anchored currencies become resistant to speculative attack.
For citizens savings hold their value, wages keep pace with productivity, and predatory lending loses its grip. A borrower is no longer the permanent servant of a lender; money once again serves the real economy.
Stakeholder Perspectives
Policymakers see restored sovereignty and an electorally powerful promise: price stability without austerity.
Bankers gain a de‑leveraged environment where profits derive from custodial service and productivity‑linked financing rather than opaque credit pyramids.
Academics and students encounter a clearer, more ethical monetary theory, opening careers in reserve auditing, digital‑ledger engineering, and C2C research.
Faith communities witness a system that rebukes usury, protects the vulnerable, and encourages stewardship of resources.
Conclusion
The Credit‑to‑Credit Monetary System is more than a technical adjustment; it is an economic and moral reset that effectively undoes the Nixon Shock by re‑establishing money as a claim on real value rather than fresh debt. Through the Treaty of Nairobi, nations can adopt C2C transparently, ensuring every creditor is made whole and every currency unit is fully backed.
By restoring monetary discipline and linking issuance to authentic production, C2C promises lasting price stability, sovereign fiscal autonomy, inclusive growth, and the protection of individual purchasing power. The moment to act is now: policymakers, financiers, scholars, and citizens are invited to join Globalgood Corporation in building a debt‑free monetary future where money once again serves humanity—rather than the other way around.