Hegel had argued that historical change ensures that there is no cumulative fund of information available to the individual. Hayek answered, Yes, there is. It’s called the marketplace. And the freer the markets, the more people have access to that fund. Thus, “we need decentralization because only thus can we ensure that the knowledge of the particular circumstances [of a given transaction] will be promptly” and efficiently used—and human beings will benefit materially from that freedom.
