I often think about the fact that the objects we use to represent currency have no actual practical utility outside of their representation of “money”. But why did we begin using this system in place of exchanging good and services with one another? At what point did humans see fit that rounded metals and rectangular sheets of paper had an assigned representation of value that could be exchanged for goods and services?
In: Economics
During the crusades the Templar order offered a service where a person could deposit money in e.g France, get a paper receipt, and withdraw the same amount in Jerusalem.
That’s another abstraction on top of the question you’re asking but it’s still paper representing a monetary asset. And the reason was for security during the crusaders journey.
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