Ever since humankind realized that proper practice of commerce would be dependent on some common medium of exchange, the use of objects as mitigation to the challenges of barter was to take root as early as 9000BC. This quest for a better way of doing commerce has led to evolution from the use of cowry shell in China, to the use of coins, paper money, and electronic funds transfer. While the development of money was gradual from 9000 BC, the 21st Century saw a steady rise in innovative evolution of money it would not be too unrealistic to speculate that in 2050, microchip implantation will be the latest trend in this string of innovation. The need to carry cash or any signification of it like credit cards will probably be old fashioned for most people.
The Historical Evolution of Money
Historians believe that the domestication of animals and the cultivation of crops between 9000 BC and 6000 BC laid the foundation for the development of money. Cattle and grains were used as money alongside the convectional barter trade. It has been postulated that while barter was able to meet most of the demands of commerce in ancient time, it was felt that a universally acceptable means of exchange portended more economic advantage. Archeological evidence suggests that by 3000 BC, there were some form of banking. Evidence in form of clay tablets from Babylon point to the development of some form of writing in Mesopotamia, probably from the motivating need to keep record of the wealth people kept. It is speculated that such records were necessary to keep account of the commodities in terms of grain and livestock that people deposited in royal granaries or temples. The precise time when cowry shell acquired wide usage is debatable; however, there is some evidence that they were in common usage in ancient China as early as 2000 BC at the dawn of Chinese civilization. The earliest written reference to the use of cowry shell is found in Ssu-ma Ch’ien’s journals of c. 145-86BC; where he mentions this commodity as being used widely in the Shang and Chou periods. Recent archeological findings of large quantities of cowry shells in tombs have led to the conclusion that they were used as a medium of exchange. Some of the ancient cowries from the Shang and Chou periods are dated 1500 BC. Owing to the inflation caused by the increased availability of Cowry shells, by 700 BC, there were some indications of an intention to use coins in a manner similar to what we have now. This concept was first developed in ancient Turkey. They mostly used gold and silver for making the coins, with values or amount of each coin stamped on it. From Turkey, the idea of metal coinage would spread so that by 500BC, most of the Greek city-states had developed a coinage system unique to herself. This led to the development of banking system similar to what we have in the modern world. After the invention of paper in China, it was predictable that it would be used in the manufacture of money as it was light and could be specially and colorfully decorated. Paper was initially used to convey information or letters of credit over long distances. This led to the use of paper money, as it was cautiously rolled out by the Song dynasty in 1023 and later Kublai Khan who ruled the empire of China in the 13th century.
Current Development in the Use Money
The Future of Transaction
Currently, more people are resorting to payment services that are technology based. The emergence of mobile phones and smartphone within the last five years has led to the adoption of newer ways of payment that further eliminates the need to carry cash. Near Field Communication (NFC) has now become a must have in any smartphone. This technology relying on radio communication allows for exchange of data and contactless transactions by basically bringing the two gadgets together. This alongside the development of payment methods like Visa Card, MasterCard and Octopus Card, has created totally new fields of financial transactions. Now most of the payments that we do on a day to day basis involve very limited usage of cash. From public transportation, buying of gas, foods in restaurants, convenience stores, and online shopping, almost all our transactions have adopted the use of technology to eliminate the need for cash. It is expected that the 21st Century will see an increased usage of microchips aided by RFID technology implanted either within our smartphones or our bodies. Already there are some methods of payment such as Google wallet whose use is on a tremendous rise across Asia. Mobile banking aided by the development of the GSM technology is also on the rise in Africa and the Middle East.
It is also expected that computing giants like Microsoft and Apple will probably merge with large banks in the roll out of advanced electronic systems of payment, which will dismantle the current trends of ATM and Smartcard. It will probably be iris scanners, after microchip implants become archaic. Currently there is already some form of biometric iris scanners in development in Japan. Such precision technology will obviously be encouraged by government as they will most likely reduce cases of fraud and criminality.
Basing my argument on the fact that more people are finding the convenience of cashless transactions to appealing to resist, I can speculate that personal gadgets like smart phones will be the norm in the years to come. Online sites offering an array of services from the running of household, medication, and transmission of information will surely be developed. This is for the simple reason that with such gadgetry, it is far easier for one to monitor his or her account without the need to make laborious visits to the bank. Already banks are falling over each other trying to convince prospective customers that their products and services will offer the highest return from minimum investment of time. So sophisticated is this system that unlike two decades ago, visits to the bank is become far less frequent. The concept of RFID implants may seem too much a step towards making the human being robotic, but with the increase in fraud related to the usage of credit cards, it will not be long before the idea starts to sound like a better alternative. An implant will also eliminate to the bare minimum the need to carry any currency or its representation in form of debit or credit cards.
The technological infrastructure is already way ahead for this concept as microchips are successfully used to track animals, both domesticated and wild. The first such project was in done in 1994, when a chip was surgically implanted in the necks of dogs. Now the process is very easy and has been used in Spain for the identification of patron. Being a tiny chip, the implantation is easy through an injection. This chip which would be directly linked to the bank will eliminate trips to the bank or need to carry cash. Alongside the scanners that will be able to read the microchips within wide radii, the future of commerce will be dependent more on technology than it is now.
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