Disruptions in payment transactions — even the defaulting of a financial market participant — can rapidly affect financial markets adversely and even hamper the development of the real economy. Things are only in their infancy. The issuance of electronic money should generally be restricted to banks.
Their results show that while aggressive monetary policy finally seems to be having the desired effect on the economy, this strong medicine has come with the unwanted side-effect of higher income inequality. They suggest a straightforward mechanism via the portfolio channel: an increase in the monetary base (through purchases of both safe and risky assets) tends to increase asset prices.