This edition of the Timechain newsletter brings insights from a month of travels witnessing how a corrupted monetary system brought Argentina to its knees and how an incorruptible one may yet offer salvation to the townships of South Africa.

100 years ago, Argentina was the wealthiest country per capita on the planet. And walking around Buenos Aires, one can tell. Opulent, intricate, towering stone buildings span blocks and put Paris to shame. Yet it’s all too clear that these buildings are nothing more than the ruins of a once-prosperous civilisation. Commercial activity is limited to mass-manufactured plastic goods, fast food and knock-off textiles. In short, the proprietors who now inhabit the grand buildings of old, cater exclusively to clientele just trying to make ends meet.

Where did the middle class in Argentina go? And why does it matter?

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