Banking and finance are often studied as specialized domains, governed by their own esoteric rules and concepts, and best cordoned off from broader comparative, historical and political considerations. This book develops an alternative approach. It focuses on the recent, strikingly deviant, experience of Brazil but goes well beyond that single case. It assesses financial sector reform and the consolidation of legitimate monetary authority in an era of globalization and democratization, and advocates the adoption of a holistic and contextualized perspective. It explores the cumulative potential of an incremental 'statecrafting' approach, in contrast to recently fashionable technical 'fixes' such as the idea that central bank independence provides a reliable and universal remedy for all monetary ills.