a vital monetary lesson from the 19th-c Brits

Currency and Banking Reform in 19th-Century Britain

convertibility to specie is vital, yes, and fractional reserve lending also has to be done transparently, if at all, without the illusion that deposits are equally safe in any bank - in other words, two banks operating at 1:5 ratio do not represent identical safety for deposits simply deriving from that ratio, the quality of management is critical