- Stamp scrip was a type of local money designed to be circulated and not to be hoarded.
One type of this worked this way: Each scrip certificate had printed boxes; every month a stamp costing a certain amount (in a typical case, 1% of the face value) had to be purchased and stuck in a box, otherwise the scrip lost all its value, providing a great incentive to spend it quickly. It was used successfully in Germany and Austria in the early 1930s, after national currencies collapsed. National governments considered themselves threatened by the success of stamp scrip projects, and shut them down; similar misgivings discouraged their later use elsewhere.[7]
The Alberta Social Credit Party government in 1937 issued "prosperity certificates," a form of provincial currency, in an effort to encourage spending. This scrip had boxes in which a stamp equal to 2% of the value had to be affixed each week. Thus, the value of the certificate was covered by the cost of the stamps at year's end when it matured. It is said there were literal showers of dried out stamps cascading to the ground when these certificates were pulled out of pockets in payment for something. But they did give a boost to the provincial economy.
For more, click here https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scrip
- Freigeld
Freigeld has several special properties:
- It is maintained by a monetary authority to be spending-power stable (no inflation or deflation) by means of printing more money or withdrawing money from circulation.
- It is cash flow safe (a scheme is put in place to ensure that the money is returned into the cash flow – for example, by demurrage – requiring stamps to be purchased and periodically attached to the money to keep it valid).
- It is convertible into other currencies.
- It is localized to a certain area (it is a local currency).
For more, click here https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freigeld
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Chiemgauer - is the name of a regional local currency started in 2003 in Prien am Chiemsee, Bavaria, Germany. Named after the Chiemgau, a region around the Chiemsee lake, it is intended to increase local employment, supporting local culture, and make the local food supply more resilient.[1][2] The Chiemgauer operates with a fixed exchange rate, tied to the value of the euro: 1 Chiemgauer = €1.
In 2003, Christian Gelleri, a high school teacher, started this project with his students, who are in charge of designing and printing vouchers and take care of administration, accounting, advertising, and other tasks. Chiemgauer is a member of a regional currencies' network called Regiogeld (regiomoney association).[3] Gelleri had been inspired by the economists Silvio Gesell and Rudolf Steiner.[4]
The Chiemgauer is intended for:
- Employment creation: unemployed, students, and volunteers are hired to work, earning some allowances
- Promotion of cultural, educational and environmental activities: the Chiemgauer system supports nonprofits who work for such purposes
- Promotion of sustainability: organic food and renewable energy among others
- Strengthening the solidarity: enhancing the human relationship between local shoppers and businesses
- Stimulation of local economy: The Chiemgauer retains purchasing power within the region better than the euro and favors local small businesses, stimulating transactions through demurrage.
- Express-Money: Example for a complementary currency on a national level.
Chiemgauer use has grew, and can be found primarily in Bavaria between Munich, Germany, and Salzburg, Austria (Germany, Austria, and Switzerland combined had 30 regional currency systems as of 2009)
For more, click here https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chiemgauer
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WIR BANK - The WIR Bank, formerly the Swiss Economic Circle (German: Wirtschaftsring-Genossenschaft), or WIR, is an independent complementary currency system in Switzerland that serves businesses in hospitality, construction, manufacturing, retail and professional services. WIR issues and manages a private currency, called the WIR Franc, which is used in combination with the Swiss Franc to generate dual-currency transactions.
The WIR Franc is an electronic currency reflected in clients' trade accounts and so there is no paper money. The intentions of starting were in increased sales, cash flow and profits for a qualified participant. WIR created a credit system which issues credit, in WIR Francs, to its members. The credit lines are secured by members pledging assets which ensures that the currency is asset-backed. When two members enter into a transaction with both Swiss Francs and WIR Francs it reduces the amount of cash needed by the buyer; the seller does not discount its product or service.
"WIR" is both an abbreviation of Wirtschaftsring and the word for "we" in German, reminding participants that the economic circle is also a community. According to the cooperative's statutes, "Its purpose is to encourage participating members to put their buying power at each other's disposal and keep it circulating within their ranks, thereby providing members with additional sales volume."
Although WIR started with only sixteen members, today it has grown to include 62,000. Total assets are approximately 3.0 billion CHF, annual sales in the range of 6.5 billion, as of 2005. As of 1998, assets held by the credit system were 885 million and liabilities of 844 million, i.e. the circulating WIR money, with equity in the system of 44 million. These WIR obligations being interest free have a cost of zero. Income from interest and credit clearing activities were 38 million francs.
The currency code is CHW as designated by ISO 4217.
The WIR Bank was a not-for-profit entity, although that status changed during the Bank's expansion. The bank considers themselves as stable, claiming being fully operational during times of general economic crisis and may dampen downturns in the business cycle, helping to stabilize the Swiss economy during difficult times. It is cited as an example in the documentary film.
Fore more, click here https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WIR_Bank
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The Ithaca Hour - The Ithaca HOUR is a local currency used in Ithaca, New York and is the oldest and largest local currency system in the United States that is still operating. It has inspired other similar systems in Madison, Wisconsin; Corvallis, Oregon; and a proposed system in the Lehigh Valley, Pennsylvania. One Ithaca HOUR is valued at US$10 and is generally recommended to be used as payment for one hour's work, although the rate is negotiable.
Ithaca HOURS are not backed by national currency and cannot be freely converted to national currency, although some businesses may agree to buy them.
HOURS are printed on high-quality paper and use faint graphics that would be difficult to reproduce, and each bill is stamped with a serial number, in order to discourage counterfeiting.
In 2002, a one-tenth hour bill was introduced, partly due to the encouragement and funding from Alternatives Federal Credit Union and feedback from retailers who complained about the awkwardness of only having larger denominations to work with; the bills bear the signatures of both HOURS president Steve Burke and the president of AFCU.
While the Ithaca HOUR continues to exist, in recent years it has fallen into disuse. Media accounts from the year 2011 indicate that the number of businesses accepting HOURS has declined. Several reasons are attributed to this. First has been the founder, Paul Glover, moving out of town. While in Ithaca, Glover had acted as an evangelist and networker for HOURS, helping spread their use and helping businesses find ways to spend HOURS they had received. Secondly, a general shift away from cash transactions towards electronic transfers with debit or credit cards. Glover has emphasized that every local currency needs at least one full-time networker to "promote, facilitate and troubleshoot" currency circulation.
Fore more, click here https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ithaca_Hours
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BerkShares - BerkShares is a local currency that circulates in The Berkshires region of Massachusetts. It was launched on September 29, 2006 by BerkShares Inc., with research and development assistance from the Schumacher Center for a New Economics. The BerkShares website lists around 400 businesses in Berkshire County that accept the currency. Since launch, over 7 million BerkShares have been issued from participating branch offices of local banks (as of Nov. 2015 eight branches of three different banks). The bills were designed by John Isaacs and were printed by Excelsior Printing on special paper with incorporated security features from Crane & Co.. BerkShares are pegged with an exchange rate to the US dollar, but Nick Kacher of the Schumacher Center has discussed the possibility of pegging its value to a basket of local goods in order to insulate the local economy against volatility in the US economy.
BerkShares are a local currency designed and issued for the Berkshire region of Massachusetts. According to the BerkShares website, residents purchase BerkShares at 95 cents (USD) per BerkShare from one of eight branches of three local participating banks. Businesses then accept BerkShares at full dollar value, differentiating the business as one supporting the BerkShares values of local economy, ecology, sustainability, and community, and creating a five percent discount incentive for those using the currency. BerkShares can then be used by accepting businesses to purchase goods and services from other participating businesses, make change, pay salaries, or support local non-profits, increasing the local economic multiplier effect and keeping value recirculating in the region. If businesses have an excess of BerkShares, they may also be returned to a participating bank at the equivalent rate of 95 cents per BerkShare (i.e., charging no exchange fee).
Over 70 area non-profits currently accept BerkShares for donations. Participating banks provide BerkShares with 8 brick-and-mortar offices where residents can exchange dollars for BerkShares and receive more information on the project.
For more, click here https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BerkShares
