Abstract
The national currency of the United States, the dollar, plays a critical international role. The privileged position of the dollar, which has greatly facilitated America’s role in world politics, is now being questioned. This article argues that the international monetary system tends to be based on hegemony rather than super-sovereignty or multiplicity, and that no serious challengers to the dollar’s hegemony have yet emerged. The dollar’s predominance, however, is weakening and it has turned into a ‘negotiated currency’. If its international roles are to be sustained, the dollar needs to be actively supported by other major economies. ‘Negotiation’ may fail as rising economies, most notably China, represent American political challengers rather than subordinate allies. Should the dollar cease functioning as the reliable international currency, in the absence of an alternative hegemonic currency, the world could see a more fundamental shift, such as the wider use of private international currencies.