[brookst]

I’m not seeing the difference. If I have $1 that’s worth $1 today and $0 in one year, doesn’t it stand to reason that in 6 months I could exchange it for $0.50 with a one year expiration?

Taken further, every day I could exchange all of my wealth which now has 364 days left for slightly less wealth with 365 days left.

That sure sounds like inflation.

[Retric]

The important difference is the inflation rate could differ from its current value. Money 200 months left is unlikely to be worth exactly 10x as much as money with 20 months left. That difference may not be meaningful on its own but could have interesting knock on effects depending on how money enters the system.

[brookst]

That’s true, but how is it different from nonlinear rates of return on bonds of varying lengths?

Changing the way money enters the system is interesting for sure, but orthogonal to whether expiring money is just inflation by another name.

[LouisSayers]

That truly sounds like a nightmare. Imagine going to buy a loaf of bread and being asked "what's your expiry", then being told "your money is no good here" because it only has a week left.

[janalsncm]

I tend to agree but one difference is that inflation isn’t directly imposed on all goods at the same time. Businesses need to decide to change the price. Currency with a devaluation mechanism makes everything “more expensive” at the same time. This means that while there is general upward pressure on all goods, not all things change price at the same time. I’m not sure which is better, but it’s a difference.