Drawing on extensive historical research, Eric Helleiner provides the first comprehensive political history of the phenomenon, one that details and explains the central role played by states in permitting and encouraging financial globalization.

Eric Helleiner is CIGI Chair in International Governance and Associate Professor of Political Science at the University of Waterloo. He is the author of The Making of National Money: Territorial Currencies in Historical Perspective and coeditor of Economic Nationalism in a Globalizing World, both from Cornell.

"This is a fascinating tale of how the international financial system arrived at its present global span. Helleiner argues that the liberalization of financial markets worldwide has been driven largely by government choices, not by technological change or economic pressures. The challenges to states and the reemergence of global finance reveal what an interesting and provocative book it is. This brief outline cannot do justice to its theoretical sophistication and historical depth. Helleiner has made an important contribution in a debate that will undoubtedly continue." —International Journal

Eric Helleiner offers readers a very useful and readable history of post-war changes in international finance. I would readily assign this book to graduate and advanced under-graduate seminars in international political economy. It covers a lot of territory and does not sacrifice depth for expanse.