A sample picture of a fictional ATM card. The largest part of the world's money exists only as accounting numbers which are transferred between financial computers. Various plastic cards and other devices give individual consumers the power to electronically transfer such money to and from their bank accounts, without the use of currency.
Money is historically an emergent market phenomenon establishing a commodity money, but nearly all contemporary money systems are based on fiat money. Fiat money, like any check or note of debt, is without use value as a physical commodity. It derives its value by being declared by a government to be legal tender; that is, it must be accepted as a form of payment within the boundaries of the country, for "all debts, public and private".[better source needed]Counterfeit money can cause good money to lose its value.
The Coinage Act or the Mint Act, passed by the United States Congress on April 2, 1792, created the United States dollar as the country's standard unit of money, established the United States Mint, and regulated the coinage of the United States. The long title of the legislation is An act establishing a mint, and regulating the Coins of the United States. This act established the silver dollar as the unit of money in the United States, declared it to be lawful tender, and created a decimal system for U.S. currency.
By the Act, the Mint was to be situated at the seat of government of the United States. The five original officers of the U.S. Mint were a Director, an Assayer, a Chief Coiner, an Engraver, and a Treasurer (not the same as the United States Secretary of the Treasury). The Act allowed that one person could perform the functions of Chief Coiner and Engraver. The Assayer, Chief Coiner and Treasurer were required to post a $10,000 bond with the Secretary of the Treasury. (Full article...)
The British farthing (derived from the Old Englishfeorthing, a fourth part) was a British coin worth a quarter of an old penny (1⁄960 of a pound sterling). It ceased to be struck after 1956 and was demonetised from 1 January 1961.
The British farthing is a continuation of the English farthing, struck by English monarchs prior to the Act of Union 1707 which unified the crowns of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain. Only pattern farthings were struck under Queen Anne as there was a glut of farthings from previous reigns. The coin was struck intermittently under George I and George II, but by the reign of George III, counterfeits were so prevalent the Royal Mint ceased striking copper coinage after 1775. The next farthings were the first struck by steam power, in 1799 by Matthew Boulton at his Soho Mint under licence. Boulton coined more in 1806, and the Royal Mint resumed production in 1821. The farthing was struck fairly regularly under George IV and William IV. By then it carried a scaled-down version of the penny's design, and would continue to mirror the penny and halfpenny until after 1936. (Full article...)
The Castaing machine is a device used to add lettering and decoration to the edge of a coin. Such lettering was necessitated by counterfeiting and edge clipping, which was a common problem resulting from the uneven and irregular hammered coinage. When Aubin Olivier introduced milled coinage to France, he also developed a method of marking the edges with lettering which would make it possible to detect if metal had been shaved from the edge. This method involved using a collar, into which the metal flowed from the pressure of the press. This technique was slower and more costly than later methods. France abandoned milled coinage in favour of hammering in 1585.
England experimented briefly with milled coinage, but it wasn't until Peter Blondeau brought his method of minting coins there in the mid-seventeenth century that such coinage began in earnest in that country. Blondeau also invented a different method of marking the edge, which was, according to him, faster and less costly than the method pioneered by Olivier. Though Blondeau's exact method was secretive, numismatists have asserted that it likely resembled the later device invented by Jean Castaing. Castaing's machine marked the edges by means of two steel rulers, which, when a coinage blank was forced between them, imprinted legends or designs on its edge. Castaing's device found favour in France, and it was eventually adopted in other nations, including Britain and the United States, but it was eventually phased out by mechanised minting techniques. (Full article...)
Aksum's currency served as a vessel of propaganda demonstrating the kingdom's wealth and promoting the national religion (first polytheistic and later Oriental Christianity). It also facilitated the Red Sea trade on which it thrived. The coinage has also proved invaluable in providing a reliable chronology of Aksumite kings due to the lack of extensive archaeological work in the area. (Full article...)
Bi-metallic coins are made up of a core with an outer ring. (e.g.: 500 yen coin)
Euro starter kits are packs of euro coins of all the eight denominations sealed in a plastic bag. The scope of these kits is primarily to familiarise the citizens of a nation that is going to join the eurozone with the new currency, the euro. Another objective is to fill up cash registers well in advance of €-Day. Usually these kits are available from the local banks some weeks before the euro changeover.
Mainly there are two types of starter packs: business starter kits and kits for the general public. The difference is in the number of coins per pack. Business kits are intended for retailers, thereby they contain around 100 euro or more of coins and are normally contained in rolls, whereas the mini-starter kits are intended for the general public and usually have a small volume of coins. (Full article...)
World map of current international currency unions
Formal – adoption of foreign currency by virtue of bilateral or multilateral agreement with the monetary authority, sometimes supplemented by issue of local currency in currency peg regime.
Formal with common policy – establishment by multiple countries of a common monetary policy and monetary authority for their common currency.
In 1930, President Herbert Hoover vetoed the Gadsden Purchase half dollar bill. Hoffecker had been the moving force behind that bid, and he sought another commemorative coin proposal that he could control if authorizing legislation was passed. He chose the travels of Spanish officer Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca in the early 16th century. Hoffecker took liberties both with the timing of Cabeza de Vaca's travels and their location; though Hoffecker's hometown of El Paso, Texas, is featured on the coin, Cabeza de Vaca came nowhere near its site. All this made little difference to Congress, which passed the Old Spanish Trail coin bill without opposition, and it was signed into law by President Franklin D. Roosevelt. (Full article...)
Ancient Chinese coins
Ancient Chinese coinage includes some of the earliest known coins. These coins, used as early as the Spring and Autumn period (770–476 BCE), took the form of imitations of the cowrie shells that were used in ceremonial exchanges. The Spring and Autumn period also saw the introduction of the first metal coins; however, they were not initially round, instead being either knife shaped or spade shaped. Round metal coins with a round, and then later square hole in the center were first introduced around 350 BCE. The beginning of the Qin Dynasty (221–206 BCE), the first dynasty to unify China, saw the introduction of a standardised coinage for the whole Empire. Subsequent dynasties produced variations on these round coins throughout the imperial period. At first the distribution of the coinage was limited to use around the capital city district, but by the beginning of the Han Dynasty, coins were widely used for such things as paying taxes, salaries and fines.
Ancient Chinese coins are markedly different from their European counterparts. Chinese coins were manufactured by being cast in molds, whereas European coins were typically cut and hammered or, in later times, milled. Chinese coins were usually made from mixtures of metals such copper, tin and lead, from bronze, brass or iron: precious metals like gold and silver were uncommonly used. The ratios and purity of the coin metals varied considerably. Most Chinese coins were produced with a square hole in the middle. This was used to allow collections of coins to be threaded on a square rod so that the rough edges could be filed smooth, and then threaded on strings for ease of handling. (Full article...)
The Coinage Act of 1965, Pub.L.89–81, 79 Stat.254, enacted July 23, 1965, eliminated silver from the circulating United States dime (ten-cent piece) and quarter dollar coins. It also reduced the silver content of the half dollar from 90 percent to 40 percent; silver in the half dollar was subsequently eliminated by a 1970 law.
There had been coin shortages beginning in 1959, and the United States Bureau of the Mint expanded production to try to meet demand. The early 1960s was a time of increased use of silver both in the coinage and in industry, putting pressure on the price of silver, which was capped at just over $1.29 per ounce by government sales at that price. The silver in a dollar's worth of quarters would be worth more as bullion than as money if the price of the metal rose past $1.38 per ounce, and there was widespread hoarding of silver coins. Demand for the Kennedy half dollar as a collectable drove it from circulation after its debut in 1964. The Bureau of the Mint increased production, helping reduce the coin shortages by May 1965, but government stocks of silver were being rapidly reduced, and threatened to run out by 1968. After extensive study by the Treasury Department, President Lyndon B. Johnson in June 1965 recommended that Congress pass legislation to allow for silverless dimes and quarters, and debased silver half dollars. Although there was some opposition, mainly from legislators representing Western mining states, the bill progressed rapidly through Congress, and was enacted with Johnson's signature on July 23, 1965. (Full article...)
The United States Assay Commission was an agency of the United States government from 1792 to 1980. Its function was to supervise the annual testing of the gold, silver, and (in its final years) base metal coins produced by the United States Mint to ensure that they met specifications. Although some members were designated by statute, for the most part the commission, which was freshly appointed each year, consisted of prominent Americans, including numismatists. Appointment to the Assay Commission was eagerly sought after, in part because commissioners received a commemorative medal. These medals, different each year, are extremely rare, with the exception of the 1977 issue, which was sold to the general public.
The Mint Act of 1792 authorized the Assay Commission. Beginning in 1797, it met in most years at the Philadelphia Mint. Each year, the President of the United States appointed unpaid members, who would gather in Philadelphia to ensure the weight and fineness of silver and gold coins issued the previous year were to specifications. In 1971, the commission met, but for the first time had no gold or silver to test, with the end of silver coinage. Beginning in 1977, President Jimmy Carter appointed no members of the public to the commission, and in 1980, he signed legislation abolishing it. (Full article...)
An intelligent banknote neutralisation system (IBNS) is a security system which protects valuable items by rendering them unusable or easily detectable if an unauthorised individual tries to gain access to them. Dye packs are commonly used to safeguard currency against bank robberies in this manner; when such a pack is taken out of the bank, it releases an indelible dye that stains the money with a conspicuous bright color, making it easy to recognise as stolen. Bonding agents (glues) have been used more recently as alternative degradation agents.
Well-neutralised banknotes cannot be brought back into circulation easily. They can be linked to the crime scene and restricted procedures are in place to exchange them at the financial institution. This makes stealing neutralised banknotes uneconomical and impractical. The IBNS removes the anticipated reward of the crime and increases the risk of being caught. This not only foils the theft but acts as a deterrent against further attacks. (Full article...)
Longacre was born in Delaware County, Pennsylvania, in 1794. He ran away to Philadelphia at age 12, where he became an apprentice in a bookstore. His artistic talent developed and he was released to apprentice in an engraving firm. He struck out on his own in 1819, making a name providing illustrations for popular biographical books. He portrayed the leading men of his day; support from some of them, such as South Carolina Senator John C. Calhoun, led to his appointment as chief engraver after the death of Christian Gobrecht in 1844. (Full article...)
A promissory note, sometimes referred to as a note payable, is a legal instrument (more particularly, a financing instrument and a debt instrument), in which one party (the maker or issuer) promises in writing to pay a determinate sum of money to the other (the payee), either at a fixed or determinable future time or on demand of the payee, under specific terms. (Full article...)
The Europa Coin Programme, also known as the European Silver Programme, or the Eurostar Programme, is an initiative dedicated to the issuance of collector-oriented legal tender coins in precious metals to celebrate European identity. The issuing authorities of EU member countries voluntarily contribute coins to the Europa Coin Programme. Multiple countries have participated in the programme, beginning in 2004. Some coins are denominated in euro, others are denominated in other currencies. Europa coins are legal tender. (Full article...)
Legal tender is a form of money that courts of law are required to recognize as satisfactory payment for any monetary debt. Each jurisdiction determines what is legal tender, but essentially it is anything which when offered ("tendered") in payment of a debt extinguishes the debt. There is no obligation on the creditor to accept the tendered payment, but the act of tendering the payment in legal tender discharges the debt.
Some jurisdictions allow contract law to overrule the status of legal tender, allowing (for example) merchants to specify that they will not accept cash payments. Coins and banknotes are usually defined as legal tender in many countries, but personal cheques, credit cards, and similar non-cash methods of payment are usually not. Some jurisdictions may include a specific foreign currency as legal tender, at times as its exclusive legal tender or concurrently with its domestic currency. Some jurisdictions may forbid or restrict payment made by other than legal tender. In some jurisdictions legal tender can be refused as payment if no debt exists prior to the time of payment (where the obligation to pay may arise at the same time as the offer of payment). For example, vending machines and transport staff do not have to accept the largest denomination of banknote. Shopkeepers may reject large banknotes, which is covered by the legal concept known as invitation to treat. (Full article...)
Mammon/ˈmæmən/ in the New Testament of the Bible is commonly thought to mean money, material wealth, or any entity that promises wealth, and is associated with the greedy pursuit of gain. The Gospel of Matthew and the Gospel of Luke both quote Jesus using the word in a phrase often rendered in English as "You cannot serve both God and mammon."
A countermarked, punchmarked or counterstamped coin is a coin that has had some additional mark or symbol punched into it at some point after it was originally produced while in circulation. This practice is now obsolete.
Countermarking can be done for a variety of reasons. If the currency is reformed, existing coins may be rendered void. In this situation, coins already in circulation could be marked with the new value (according to the new currency system). The life span of existing coins could thus be extended, which might under some circumstances be a cheaper alternative to recalling the coins, melting them and striking replacements. Similarly, foreign coins could be marked as legal or accepted currency, thus allowing them to circulate in the area where they were countermarked. Countermarking can also be done for political reasons, i.e. a new state or régime demonstrating its authority by countermarking coins issued by the previous state. (Full article...)
Currency stacked in the game's "bank"
Monopoly money is a type of play money used in the board game Monopoly. It is different from most currencies, including the American currency or British currency upon which it is based, in that it is smaller, one-sided, and does not have different imagery for each denomination. It is not legal tender and has no monetary value in any jurisdictions. (Full article...)
Currency symbols of the four most widely held reserve currencies
The United Kingdom's pound sterling was the primary reserve currency of much of the world in the 19th century and first half of the 20th century. However, by the end of the 20th century, the United States dollar had become the world's dominant reserve currency. The world's need for dollars has allowed the United States government to borrow at lower costs, giving the United States an advantage in excess of $100 billion per year. (Full article...)
Play money is noticeably fake bills or coins intended to be used as toycurrency, especially for classroom instruction or as a marker in board games such as Monopoly, rather than currency in a legitimate exchange market. Play money coins and bills are collected widely. They can be found made from metals, cardboard or, more frequently today, plastic. For card games such as poker, casino tokens are commonly used instead.
By the late 1880s, there were increasing calls for the replacement of the Seated Liberty design, used since the 1830s on most denominations of silver coins. In 1891, Mint DirectorEdward O. Leech, having been authorized by Congress to approve coin redesigns, ordered a competition, seeking a new look for the silver coins. As only the winner would receive a cash prize, invited artists refused to participate and no entry from the public proved suitable. Leech instructed Barber to prepare new designs for the dime, quarter, and half dollar, and after the chief engraver made changes to secure Leech's endorsement, they were approved by President Benjamin Harrison in November 1891. Striking of the new coins began the following January. (Full article...)
A selection of metal coins.
A coin is a small, flat, (usually, depending on the country or value) round piece of metal or plastic used primarily as a medium of exchange or legal tender. They are standardized in weight, and produced in large quantities at a mint in order to facilitate trade. They are most often issued by a government. Coins often have images, numerals, or text on them. Obverse and its opposite, reverse, refer to the two flat faces of coins and medals. In this usage, obverse means the front face of the object and reverse means the back face. The obverse of a coin is commonly called heads, because it often depicts the head of a prominent person, and the reverse tails.
Coins are usually metal or an alloy, or sometimes made of manmade materials. They are usually disc shaped. Coins made of valuable metal are stored in large quantities as bullion coins. Other coins are used as money in everyday transactions, circulating alongside banknotes. Usually the highest value coin in circulation (excluding bullion coins) is worth less than the lowest-value note. In the last hundred years, the face value of circulation coins has occasionally been lower than the value of the metal they contain, for example due to inflation. If the difference becomes significant, the issuing authority may decide to withdraw these coins from circulation, possibly issuing new equivalents with a different composition, or the public may decide to melt the coins down or hoard them (see Gresham's law). (Full article...)
Reverse FERNANDVS ET ELISABET DEI GR[ATIA] "Ferdinand and Elisabeth, by the Grace of God" Displays the arms of the Catholic Monarchs post 1492, with Granada in base. Letter S on the left is the sign of the mint of Seville and VIII on the right i.e. eight in roman numerals.
The Spanish dollar, also known as the piece of eight (in Spanish: Real de a ocho, Dólar, Peso duro, Peso fuerte or Peso), is a silvercoin of approximately 38 mm (1.5 in) diameter worth eight Spanish reales. It was minted in the Spanish Empire following a monetary reform in 1497. It was widely used as the first international currency because of its uniformity in standard and milling characteristics. Some countries countersigned the Spanish dollar so it could be used as their local currency.
The Spanish dollar was the coin upon which the original United States dollar was based, and it remained legal tender in the United States until the Coinage Act of 1857. Because it was widely used in Europe, the Americas, and the Far East, it became the first world currency by the late 18th century. Aside from the U.S. dollar, several other currencies, such as the Canadian dollar, the Japanese yen, the Chinese yuan, the Philippine peso, and several currencies in the rest of the Americas, were initially based on the Spanish dollar and other 8-real coins. Diverse theories link the origin of the "$" symbol to the columns and stripes that appear on one side of the Spanish dollar. (Full article...)
The coin was named after the English gold sovereign, which was last minted about 1603, and originated as part of the Great Recoinage of 1816. Many in Parliament believed a one-pound coin should be issued rather than the 21-shilling (£1.05) guinea that was struck until that time. The Master of the Mint, William Wellesley Pole had Pistrucci design the new coin; his depiction was also used for other gold coins. Originally, the coin was unpopular because the public preferred the convenience of banknotes but paper currency of value £1 was soon limited by law. With that competition gone, the sovereign became a popular circulating coin, and was used in international trade and overseas, being trusted as a coin containing a known quantity of gold. (Full article...)
The one hundred euro note (€100) is one of the higher value euro banknotes and has been used since the introduction of the euro (in its cash form) in 2002. The note is used daily by some 343 million Europeans and in the 23 countries which have it as their sole currency (with 22 legally adopting it). In June 2020, there were approximately 3,216,000,000 hundred euro banknotes in circulation in the eurozone. It is the third most widely circulated denomination, accounting for 12.8% of the total banknotes.
It is the third largest note, measuring 147 millimetres (5.8 in) × 82 millimetres (3.2 in) and has a green colour scheme. The hundred euro notes depict bridges and arches/doorways in the Baroque and Rococo style (17th and 18th centuries). The hundred euro note contains several complex security features such as watermarks, invisible ink, holograms and microprinting that document its authenticity. (Full article...)
By 1916, the dime, quarter, and half dollar designed by Mint Chief Engraver Charles E. Barber had been struck for 25 years, and could be replaced by the Treasury, of which the Mint is a part, without Congressional authorization. Mint officials were under the misapprehension that the designs had to be changed, and held a competition among three sculptors, in which Barber, who had been in his position for 36 years, also took part. Weinman's designs for the dime and half dollar were selected. (Full article...)
The europa was a token coinage created in 1928 by Joseph Archer [fr], a politician and industrialist from the Nièvre region in France. The currency was promoted by Philibert Besson [fr], the elected deputy for the Haute-Loire who, along with Archer, was an influential figure in the European federalist movement. The coins were minted in the name of a hypothetical "Federated States of Europe" (États fédérés d'Europe). Unlike contemporary currencies based on the gold standard, the europa was intended to derive its notional value from its value in labour.
The currency never circulated except unofficially between federalists of the Nièvre region. Two denominations were produced, both depicting Louis Pasteur and a map of Europe on the obverse and reverse respectively: one valued at 1 europa and another at 1/10 of a europa. (Full article...)
Nepalese silver mohar in the name of king Bhupatindra Malla (ruled 1696-1722) of Bhadgaon (Bhaktapur), dated Nepal Era 816 ( = AD 1696), obverse. Silver mohars of this type were also exported to Tibet where they circulated along with other Malla mohars.
The mohar was the currency of the Kingdom of Nepal from the second half of the 17th century until 1932. Silver and gold mohars were issued, each subdivided into 128 dams. Copper dams were also issued, together with copper paisa worth 4 copper dams. The values of the copper, silver and gold coinages relative to one another were not fixed until 1903. In that year, the silver mohar became the standard currency, divided into 50 paisa. It was replaced in 1932 by the rupee, also called the mohru (Moru), at a rate of 2 mohars = 1 rupee. (Full article...)
The Lincoln cent (sometimes called the Lincoln penny) is a one-cent coin that has been struck by the United States Mint since 1909. The obverse or heads side was designed by Victor David Brenner, as was the original reverse, depicting two stalks of wheat (thus "wheat pennies", struck 1909–1958). The coin has seen several reverse, or tails, designs and now bears one by Lyndall Bass depicting a Union shield. All coins struck by the United States government with a value of 1/100 of a dollar are called cents because the United States has always minted coins using decimals. The penny nickname is a carryover from the coins struck in England, which went to decimals for coins in 1971.
In 1905, sculptor Augustus Saint-Gaudens was hired by the Mint to redesign the cent and the four gold coins, which did not require congressional approval. Two of Saint-Gaudens's proposed designs for the cent were eventually adapted for the gold pieces, but Saint-Gaudens died in August 1907 before submitting additional designs for the cent. In January 1909, the Mint engaged Brenner to design a cent depicting the late president Abraham Lincoln, 1909 being the centennial year of his birth. It was the first widely circulating design of a U.S. president on a coin, an idea that had been seen as too monarchical in the past, namely by George Washington. Nevertheless, Brenner's design was eventually approved, and the new coins were issued to great public interest on August 2, 1909. (Full article...)
Issuance of bank notes ৳10 and larger is controlled by Bangladesh Bank, while the ৳2 and ৳5 banknotes are the responsibility of the ministry of finance of the government of Bangladesh. The most commonly used symbol for the taka is "৳" and "Tk", used on receipts while purchasing goods and services. It was formerly divided into 100 poysha, but poysha coins are no longer in circulation. (Full article...)
The Flowing Hair dollar was the first dollar coin issued by the United States federal government. The coin was minted in 1794 and 1795; its size and weight were based on the Spanish dollar, which was popular in trade throughout the Americas.
In 1791, following a study by Alexander Hamilton, Congress passed a joint resolution calling for the establishment of a national mint. Later that year, in his third State of the Union address, President George Washington urged Congress to provide for a mint, which was officially authorized by the Coinage Act of 1792. Despite the authorization, silver and gold coins were not struck until 1794. The Flowing Hair dollar, designed by Robert Scot, was initially produced in 1794, and again in 1795. In October 1795 the design was replaced by the Draped Bust dollar. (Full article...)
The Canadian dollar (symbol: $; code: CAD; French: dollar canadien) is the currency of Canada. It is abbreviated with the dollar sign $, or sometimes CA$, Can$ or C$ to distinguish it from other dollar-denominated currencies. It is divided into 100 cents (¢).
Owing to the image of a loon on its back, the dollar coin, and sometimes the unit of currency itself, are sometimes referred to as the loonie by English-speaking Canadians and foreign exchange traders and analysts. (Full article...)
The silver center cent was an early attempt to reduce the size of the cent while maintaining its intrinsic value.
Due to their rarity and historical significance Silver center cents are highly prized by collectors with one graded PCGS MS61 being sold in an online auction in April 2012 for $1.15 million. (Full article...)
The British florin, or two-shilling coin, was issued from 1849 until 1967, with a final issue for collectors dated 1970. Equivalent in value to one-tenth of a pound (24 old pence), it was the last coin circulating immediately prior to decimalisation to be demonetised, in 1993, having for a quarter of a century circulated alongside the ten-pence piece, identical in specifications and value.
The florin was introduced as part of an experiment in decimalisation that went no further at the time. The original florins, dated 1849, attracted controversy for omitting a reference to God from Queen Victoria's titles; that type is accordingly known as the "Godless florin", and was in 1851 succeeded by the "Gothic florin", for its design and style of lettering. Throughout most of its existence, the florin bore some variation of either the shields of the United Kingdom, or the emblems of its constituent nations on the reverse, a tradition broken between 1902 and 1910, when the coin featured a windswept figure of a standing Britannia. (Full article...)
The economic turmoil of the American Civil War caused government-issued coins, even the non-silver Indian Head cent, to vanish from circulation, hoarded by the public. One means of filling this gap was private token issues, often made of bronze. The cent at that time was struck of a copper-nickel alloy, the same diameter as the later Lincoln cent, but somewhat thicker. The piece was difficult for the Philadelphia Mint to strike, and Mint officials, as well as the annual Assay Commission, recommended the coin's replacement. Despite opposition from those wishing to keep the metal nickel in the coinage, led by Pennsylvania Congressman Thaddeus Stevens, Congress passed the Coinage Act of 1864, authorizing bronze cents and two-cent pieces. (Full article...)
The yuan (Chinese: 元; pinyin: yuán) is the basic unit of the renminbi, but the word is also used to refer to the Chinese currency generally, especially in international contexts. One yuan divides into ten jiao (Chinese: 角; pinyin: jiǎo), and a jiao in turn divides into ten fen (Chinese: 分; pinyin: fēn). The renminbi is issued by the People's Bank of China, the monetary authority of China. (Full article...)
The concept of the yen was a component of the late-19th centuryMeiji government's modernization program of Japan's economy, which postulated the pursuit of a uniform currency throughout the country, modeled after the Europe a decimal currency system. Before the Meiji Restoration, Japan's feudal fiefs all issued their own money, hansatsu, in an array of incompatible denominations. The New Currency Act of 1871 did away with these and established the yen, which was defined as 1.5 g (0.048 troy ounces) of gold, or 24.26 g (0.780 troy ounces) of silver, as the new decimal currency. The former han (fiefs) became prefectures and their mints private chartered banks, which initially retained the right to print money. To bring an end to this situation, the Bank of Japan was founded in 1882 and given a monopoly on controlling the money supply. (Full article...)
The coin stems from the desire of the Columbian Exposition's organizers to gain federal money to complete construction of the fair. Congress granted an appropriation, and allowed it to be in the form of commemorative half dollars, which legislators and organizers believed could be sold at a premium. Fair official James Ellsworth wanted the new coin to be based on a 16th-century painting he owned by Lorenzo Lotto, reputedly of Columbus, and pushed for this through the design process. When initial sketches by Mint Chief Engraver Charles E. Barber proved unsatisfactory, fair organizers turned to a design by artist Olin Levi Warner, which after modification by Barber and by his assistant, George T. Morgan, was struck by the Mint. (Full article...)
The South Korean won (/wʌn/; Korean: 원, Korean pronunciation: [wʌn]; symbol: ₩; code: KRW) or Korean Republic won (Korean: 대한민국 원) is the official currency of South Korea. A single won is divided into 100 jeon, the monetary subunit. The jeon is no longer used for everyday transactions, and appears only in foreign exchange rates. The won is issued by the Bank of Korea, based in the capital city of Seoul. (Full article...)
The dram (Armenian: դրամ; sign: ֏; code: AMD) is the monetary unit of Armenia and the neighboring Republic of Artsakh. It was historically subdivided into 100 luma (Armenian: լումա). The word "dram" translates into English as "money" and is cognate with the Greek drachma and the Arabic dirham, as well as the English weight unit dram. The first instance of a dram currency was in the period from 1199 to 1375, when silver coins called dram were issued. (Full article...)
The apsar (Abkhazian: аԥсар, āpsār) is a currency of Abkhazia. So far, only coins in denominations of 1, 2, 10, 20, 25, 50, and 100 apsars and banknote for 500 apsars have been issued. While the coins are legal tender in the Republic of Abkhazia, their usage is very limited, and the coins are mostly made for collectors. In Abkhazia, the Russian ruble is used in practice. The first apsar coins were introduced in 2008.
The Soviet ruble (Russian: рубль; see below for other languages of the USSR) was the currency of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR). One ruble (руб) was divided into 100 kopeks (Russian: копе́йка, pl. копе́йки – kopeyka, kopeyki). Many of the ruble designs were created by Ivan Dubasov. The production of Soviet rubles was the responsibility of the Federal State Unitary Enterprise, or Goznak, which was in charge of the printing of and materials production for banknotes and the minting of coins in Moscow and Leningrad. In addition to regular currency, some other currency units were used, such as several forms of convertible ruble, transferable ruble, clearing ruble, Vneshtorgbank cheque, etc.; also, several forms of virtual rubles (called "non-cash ruble" or "cashless ruble": "Безналичный рубль" beznalichny rubl) were used for inter-enterprise accounting and international settlement in the Comecon zone. In 1991, after the breakup of the USSR, the Soviet ruble continued to be used in the post-Soviet states, forming a "ruble zone", until it was replaced with the Russian ruble in September 1993. (Full article...)
... that sculptor Alfred Gilbert fled England twice—once for love, once for money?
... that British Rail's Automatic Train Protection system was estimated to cost £11 million per life saved, more than the £4 million per life to be considered good value for money?
... that after winning the lottery, Jay Sommers used the money to fund a career in NASCAR?
... that the fashionable hula master ʻIoane ʻŪkēkē was mistaken for a prince in his prime but ended his days blind and begging for money on the streets of Honolulu?
... that the winner in Rantzen v Mirror Group Newspapers was awarded "Mickey Mouse money" by the jury, which was reduced on appeal for being disproportionate?
A sample picture of a fictional ATM card. The largest part of the world's money exists only as accounting numbers which are transferred between financial computers. Various plastic cards and other devices give individual consumers the power to electronically transfer such money to and from their bank accounts, without the use of currency.
Tibetan kong par tangka, dated 13-45 (= AD 1791),obverse
Gold coins are an example of legal tender that are traded for their intrinsic value, rather than their face value.