---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: There's only one thing that all of the…"
description: "\"There's only one thing that all of the central banks control and that is the base, their own liability, and they can control that in various ways. They..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/388/milton-friedman-616_assets_there-s-only-one-thing-that-all-of-the-c_2044451.jpg"
---

#  There's only one thing that all of the central banks…

![“There's only one thing that all of the central banks control and that is the base, their own liability, and they can control that in various ways. They can control it directly by open market operations, buying and selling government securities or other assets, for example, buying and selling gold…” quote by Milton Friedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/388/milton-friedman-616_assets_there-s-only-one-thing-that-all-of-the-c_2044451.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/388/milton-friedman-616_assets_there-s-only-one-thing-that-all-of-the-c_2044451.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/388/milton-friedman-616_assets_there-s-only-one-thing-that-all-of-the-c_2044451.jpg)

> “There's only one thing that all of the central banks control and that is the base, their own liability, and they can control that in various ways. They can control it directly by open market operations, buying and selling government securities or other assets, for example, buying and selling gold, or they can control it indirectly by altering the rate at which banks lend to one another.”

[Milton Friedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milton-friedman/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Central banks control the monetary base, affecting liquidity via open market operations and interest rates.

**In simple terms:** Banks manage money supply.

Key Takeaway

Understand how policy impacts economy.

Themes

economics monetary policy finance

Mood

analytical critical

Type

educational informative

When to use this quote

- policy debates
- financial planning
- investment decisions

Key Concepts

money supply interest rates banking operations

Questions to Reflect On

- What are the risks of over‑controlling the base?
- How do open market operations influence inflation?

A Different Perspective

Policy effects can be delayed and unpredictable.

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