Course Code: ECON 206
Academic Year: 2024-2025
The concept of money is a powerful one. Money forms the underpinning of the world's financial system and is the fuel that keeps the economic engine of society running. From the early coins of a primitive society in 600 BC to the electronic cash of today, money has evolved into an essential tool of the global economy. It serves much more than just its functional roles as a medium of exchange, a store of value and a unit of account. Money also has deeper meaning - it has become a focal point of contemporary world culture and in many ways defines relationships among people. This course will cover the history of money from the early agrarian societies of barter to the electronic cash of the current global financial system. How did the concept of credit develop? The foundation of banks and the banking system and the failures of early loan sharking will be explored. What lead to the creation of bonds and stocks as important extensions of money? Why do stock and real estate markets follow patterns of boom and bust? What does the future of money look like? How will the creation of electronic money and the globalization of currency and financial markets transform society?