I think there have been other times as well. I seem to remember something about the expansion of the Roman Empire, and again in the Middle Ages when global trading accelerated. Apparently then, the merchants and traders ignored their country's rulers and set up their own system of coinage and contracts. I'm pretty certain there was inflation around the time of the Renaissance. It seems to be linked with expansions or new ways of trading.
Does that change the principle of the article that we're living in a debt economy?