Erik Thedéen on QE, Central Bank Independence, and Digital Payments

Erik Thedéen is governor of Sweden's Riksbank, the world's oldest central bank, Chairman of the Executive Board, and the first sitting central bank governor to appear on Macro Musings. In his first appearance on the show, Erik joins to discuss the history and operation of the Riksbank, the lessons learned from QE, the future of digital payments, and much more.

Watch the full length video on our new YouTube Channel!

Check out the transcript for this week's episode, now with links.

Recorded on September 4th, 2026

Subscribe to David's Substack: Macroeconomic Policy Nexus
Follow David Beckworth on X: @DavidBeckworth
Follow the show on X: @Macro_Musings

Check out our Macro Musings merch!

Timestamps
00:00:00 - Intro
00:01:41 - Erik's Career
00:03:03 - History of the Riksbank
00:13:04 - Riksbank's Inflation Target
00:15:28 - Riksbank's Operating Framework
00:25:09 - Riksbank's Experiences with QE
00:30:26 - Deposit Facility at Riksbank
00:39:31 - Digital Payments
00:47:27 - Dollar-Based Stablecoins and Sweden
00:50:09 - Tokenization
00:52:37 - Outro