This post addresses the USD in the context of spreadsheet capitalism and its representational, formulaic, and networking techniques. It uses its central logic (substitution – symbolic computing – telecom infrastructure) to explain the USD/eurodollar’s centrality and network effects. It shows that the USD and its eurodollar shadow retain centrality because they are not just monetary units but cells at the center of the global spreadsheet, reproduced and reinforced daily by formulas running on Bloomberg, Aladdin, Workforce, and Wind terminals operating worldwide.

The standard definition of network effects is that the more people who use a medium, the more valuable it becomes. In this case, the more actors (banks, corporations, central banks, exporters/importers, and remitters) use the USD, the stronger the need for dollar-denominated assets, such as US Treasuries, repos, and eurodollars. The SWIFT (Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication) network is particularly valuable because it is used globally to transfer funds from one bank to another.

This means that USD/eurodollar retains dominance not just because of US economic size, but because its spreadsheet centrality as a reference cell, formulaic operator, and synchronized node element. These combine to create powerful network effects. These effects continuously reproduce the dollar’s role as the world’s reserve currency, invoicing unit, and liquidity solution, creating unique time–space power over globalization and trade.

Currently, the USD/eurodollar is the absolute reference cell ($USD$1) in global spreadsheet finance. Formulas in financial terminals (NPV, IRR, discounting, FX, VaR, repo haircuts, and swap resets) are constantly calculated relative to this cell, forcing alignment to the USD. In the global balance sheet “spreadsheet,” central banks, sovereign wealth funds, and corporates hold reserves in cells denominated in USD and eurodollars. [1]

This process is daily, recursive, and performative. The centrality of the USD is not given; it is produced and reproduced every time a formula is run. The USD/eurodollar isn’t just the dominant currency; it is the spreadsheet cell through which the world makes its financial calculations, continuously recomputed by formulas that lock global finance into its orbit. This makes the USD, global finance’s universal semiotic anchor, reinforced daily.

Network Effects of the Spreadsheet Stack

The USD’s global power is not just about US GDP or military strength; it’s also about network effects built into the financial infrastructure, where the dollar sits at the center cell of the global spreadsheet, anchoring liquidity, collateral, and pricing. Strong network effects are one of the primary reasons the USD remains the dominant reserve, funding, and transaction currency. These calculations are global, synchronized by terminals and telecom infrastructure.

In the semiotic–computational–telecom stack of spreadsheet capitalism, three major factors converge to generate USD network effects. These entrench dollar dominance and project financial time-space power to shape global liquidity rhythms and constrain the monetary policy space of other states. These are semiotic substitution, symbolic computing, and gridmatic network structure at a global scale.

Semiotic substitution makes USD the symbolic unit of global equivalence. In the reigning spreadsheet logic, USD is the universal cell of value. Every financial instrument — from Treasury bonds to repos, FX swaps, or commodities is denominated, quoted, or can be translated into US dollars. The USD substitutes for local currencies, creating a standard unit of account that translates heterogeneous values into a single unit of equivalence. The more instruments priced in USD, the more necessary it becomes for others to use it. Liquidity consolidates in the dollar. Actors anywhere in the world can instantly benchmark value in USD, binding local markets into a shared temporal rhythm (Fed policy cycles, Treasury auctions) producing time-space power.

Symbolic computing in spreadsheet capitalism ties global instruments into formulas that recalculate from a USD central cell. Through the mechanism of spreadsheet logic – formulas for discounting, swaps, or collateral haircuts are built around dollar benchmarks (SOFR, Fed Funds, Treasury yields).

The semiosis (meaning-making) effect is that USD benchmarks function as symbolic operators. Change one cell, like the Fed rate, and the recalculations ripple globally. This symbolic centrality means that dollar instruments are self-reinforcing: hedging, risk modeling, and valuation all “speak the language” of dollar pricing, reinforcing network effects. The USD wields time-space power because symbolic recalculations of global liquidity are temporally synchronized to its own monetary calendar.

Gridmatic infrastructure provides a networked visual interface as data digitizes and transmits those substitutions and recalculations at scale. It provides the digital plumbing of dollar circulation through SWIFT, CHIPS, CLS, and Fedwire. These form the computational-telecom backbone that routes and clears dollar transactions. Eurodollar markets add offshore balance sheets, while Bloomberg terminals, Alladin, and LSEG Workspace supply real-time spreadsheet overlays. The infrastructure itself becomes a representational grid where financial messages (such as MT103/202 in SWIFT, repo trade tickets, and swap confirmations) serve as symbolic substitutions, which are processed computationally.

Network effects are produced as each new participant increases the value of the system by extending the reach of USD liquidity, locking in path dependence, and raising switching costs. The telecom infrastructure makes dollar liquidity instantaneous across geographies while anchoring it in US jurisdictional time (New York business hours, Fed settlement deadlines). The gridmatic infrastructure enforces the wiring of payments in USD. Even offshore markets (eurodollars, petrodollars, Hong Kong’s dim sum bonds) need this grid to clear settlements.

Together, these factors combine to generate network effects that entrench dollar dominance and project temporal and spatial power. One factor is the collateral gravity of US Treasuries that concentrates balance-sheet activity around itself. When stress spreads globally, the network effects flip into liquidity gravity. Capital seeks the safety of USD, regardless of where it originates. The Dollar Milkshake Theory is an especially clear illustration of the network effects of the USD within spreadsheet capitalism.

Brent Johnson’s “Milkshake Theory” highlights the USD as a liquidity magnet. Because dollars are the most liquid, they remain the cheapest to hedge and easiest to transact. The Milkshake Theory is a vivid way of explaining why the USD attracts liquidity, and it aligns closely with our framework of spreadsheet capitalism and USD network effects.

Conclusion: Formulaic Reinforcement

The USD and eurodollar retain centrality because they are not just monetary units but cells at the center of the global spreadsheet, reproduced and reinforced daily by formulas running on Bloomberg, Aladdin, Workforce, and Wind terminals. A “global spreadsheet” grid — with USD as the absolute $A$1 reference cell, and formulas showing how FX trades, repos, and swaps would visualize this argument.

When we say the USD/eurodollar is a cell at the center of the global spreadsheet, we mean every balance sheet in the world, whether in New York, London, Shanghai, or São Paulo, has at least one column denominated in USD. A loan in yen, a bond in euros, or a derivative in pesos ultimately references the USD cell through conversions, swaps, or collateral rules.

The formulas running on Bloomberg, Aladdin, Wind, and similar terminal systems constantly recalculate this cell into action. FX conversions such as =Amount * FXRate(USD/JPY) ensure that any yen trade is mapped back to USD. Discounting/valuations like =NPV(SOFR, Cashflows) run collateral and swaps priced off USD benchmarks.[2] Risk models use Aladdin’s VaR and stress-test engines to run simulations with USD Treasuries as the safest anchor cell. In eurodollar transactions, Bloomberg’s repo haircuts and collateral flows formulaically reference US Treasuries, reinforcing USD liquidity. Every recalculation pulls other currencies, assets, and risks back into alignment with the USD reference cell.

Because markets operate like spreadsheets set to “auto-recalculate,” they continually reproduce the dollar’s centrality. Overnight repos reset collateral values daily. SOFR fixes are also computed and published daily, re-anchoring the time value of USD-denominated money. Swap resets adjust every three or six months, recalculating obligations in USD terms. Central bank operations (e.g., Fed swap lines) enter the sheet as “inputs” that cascade across the grid. Each recalculation doesn’t just measure — it re-performs the dollar’s centrality, turning semiotic substitution into lived liquidity.

This process makes the USD/eurodollar cell the universal denominator — the reference column against which all other rows and columns reconcile. It’s the pivot cell. If Excel had one “absolute reference” ($USD$1), that’s what the dollar is. Future USD challenges will face the prospects of “tippy” network effects that could shift centrality quickly if the right conditions occur.[3]

Citation APA (7th Edition)

Pennings, A.J. (2025, Sep 15) USD Centrality and Network Effects in the Global Economy. apennings.com https://apennings.com/dystopian-economies/electric-money/usd-centrality-and-network-effects-in-the-global-economy/

Notes

[1] An absolute reference in a spreadsheet, such as ($USD$1), is a formula element that uses dollar signs ($) to lock a cell’s reference so it doesn’t change when a formula is copied to other cells. In ($USD$1), the “USD” is not a standard column reference; a true absolute reference would be $A$1, where the dollar signs lock both the column (A) and the row (1).
[2] Examples like “=Amount * FXRate(USD/JPY)” and “=NPV(SOFR, Cashflows)” are illustrative but may oversimplify complex terminal calculations. They are simplified proxies in this case.
[3] In discussing the weaknesses of USD network effects, Amy Shuen in Web 2.0: A Strategy Guide suggested that network effects can be “tippy” and cause disruption such as the rapid user transition from MySpace to Facebook. Can the USD tip quickly to another currency?

© ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

Not to be considered financial advice.

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Anthony J. Pennings, PhD is a Professor at the Department of Technology and Society, State University of New York, Korea and a Research Professor for Stony Brook University. He teaches AI and broadband policy. From 2002-2012 he taught digital economics and information systems management at New York University. He also taught in the Digital Media MBA at St. Edwards University in Austin, Texas, where he lives when not in Korea.

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Category: artificial intelligence, data analytics and meaning, democratic political economies, digital spreadsheets, electric money, enabling frameworks
Tags: eurodollars > Network effects > USD

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