This paper analyzes the effect of variations in electronic money on economic growth, within the concept of monetary economics. Electronic money is considered to be everything recorded in a bank account and moved through electronic devices. The use of electronic money is not new (it appeared with the first credit cards in the 1960s); however, with the emergence of new technologies—computers, the internet, smartphones—it is now regarded as an innovation in payment systems, as it has allowed its use to increase significantly, representing a growing share of money in circulation.
Conventional monetary theory holds that such increases do not affect real variables, such as GDP, because money is neutral. Nevertheless, empirical evidence shows that modern economies are monetary economies in which banks create money through credit without requiring prior savings. This would suggest that an increase in electronic money translates into an increase in the supply of credit, which stimulates economic growth, either through demand with consumer loans or through supply with investment financing, without requiring a greater amount of banknotes and coins in circulation.