Portal:Money

The Money Portal

Euro coins and banknotes

Money is any item or verifiable record that is generally accepted as payment for goods and services and repayment of debts, such as taxes, in a particular country or socio-economic context. The primary functions which distinguish money are: medium of exchange, a unit of account, a store of value and sometimes, a standard of deferred payment.

Money was historically an emergent market phenomenon that possessed intrinsic value as a commodity; nearly all contemporary money systems are based on unbacked fiat money without use value. Its value is consequently derived by social convention, having been declared by a government or regulatory entity 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", in the case of the United States dollar.

The money supply of a country comprises all currency in circulation (banknotes and coins currently issued) and, depending on the particular definition used, one or more types of bank money (the balances held in checking accounts, savings accounts, and other types of bank accounts). Bank money, whose value exists on the books of financial institutions and can be converted into physical notes or used for cashless payment, forms by far the largest part of broad money in developed countries. (Full article...)

Refresh with new selections below (purge)

Selected article - show another

A nickel is a five-cent coin struck by the United States Mint. Composed of cupronickel (75% copper and 25% nickel), the piece has been issued since 1866. Its diameter is 0.835 inches (21.21 mm) and its thickness is 0.077 inches (1.95 mm).

The silver half dime, equal to five cents, was issued from 1792 to 1873 before today's cupronickel version. The American Civil War caused economic hardship, driving gold and silver from circulation; in response, in place of low-value coins, the government at first issued paper currency. In 1865, Congress abolished the five-cent fractional currency note after Spencer M. Clark, head of the Currency Bureau (today the Bureau of Engraving and Printing), placed his own portrait on the denomination. After the successful introduction of two-cent and three-cent pieces without precious metal, Congress also authorized a five-cent piece consisting of base metal; the Mint began striking this version in 1866. The initial design of the Shield nickel was struck from 1866 until 1883, then was replaced by the Liberty Head nickel. The Buffalo nickel was introduced in 1913 as part of a drive to increase the beauty of American coinage. (Full article...)

List of selected articles

Selected currency - show another

The apsar (Abkhaz: аԥсар, āpsār) is a currency of Abkhazia. So far, coins in denominations of 1, 2, 3, 5, 10, 20, 25, 50, and 100 apsars and banknotes in denominations of 10, 25, 100, and 500 apsars have been issued. While the coins and banknotes are legal tender in the Republic of Abkhazia, their usage is limited, and they are mostly made for collectors. In Abkhazia, the Russian ruble is used in practice. The first apsar coins were introduced in 2008.

The name derives from the Apsars, a tribe mentioned in The Georgian Chronicles who inhabited the region in the Middle Ages and who are believed to be the ancestors of the Abkhaz people. (Full article...)

List of selected currencies

Did you know - load new batch

... that a group of parents discovered that a children's charity had been embezzling money?
... that people are robbing Lebanese banks to get their own money back?
... that Russian money, known as qiang tie by locals, was used as legal currency in some regions of China for decades?
... that Starbucks raised money for HIV/AIDS research using their red holiday cups?
... that Colin Stubs spent the prize money from his first international tennis title on an old Volkswagen to travel around Europe?
... that American first lady Lou Henry Hoover secretly sent money to families in need during the Great Depression?
... that Money Shot: The Pornhub Story was described by multiple reviewers as unsalacious?
... that Martha Washington's portrait on the 1896 US one-dollar silver certificate is the most recent time that a woman has been featured on US paper money?

Related portals

Get involved

For editor resources and to collaborate with other editors on improving Wikipedia's Money-related articles, see WikiProject Numismatics.

Need help?

Do you have a question about Money-related content on Wikipedia that you can't find the answer to?

Consider asking it at the Wikipedia reference desk.

General images - show another

The following are images from various currency-related articles on Wikipedia.

Image 1Tibetan undated silver tangka (2nd half of 18th century) with eight times the syllable "dza" in vartula script, obverse (from Tibetan tangka)
Image 2Huizi currency, issued in 1160 (from Money)
Image 3Tenga of Muhammad Khudayar Khan, struck at the Kokand mint, dated 1862–1863 (from Kokand tenga)
Image 4Song Dynasty Jiaozi, the world's earliest paper money (from Money)
Image 5Ancient Jewish coin, engraved menorah, from the Hasmoneon kingdom 37-40 BCE (from Money)
Image 6Undated Kelzang tangka (1910), obverse (from Tibetan tangka)
Image 7A person counts a bundle of different Swedish banknotes. (from Money)
Image 8Tibetan undated silver tangka, struck in 1953/54, reverse. (from Tibetan tangka)
Image 9Printing paper money at a printing press in Perm (from Money)
Image 10Undated Kelzang tangka (1910), reverse (from Tibetan tangka)
Image 11Tibetan kong par tangka, dated 13-45 (= AD 1791), reverse (from Tibetan tangka)
Image 12Tibetan silver tangka with Ranjana (Lantsa) script, dated 15-28 (= AD 1894), reverse (from Tibetan tangka)
Image 13A hoard of mostly Mauryan punch-marked coins (from Punch-marked coins)
Image 14Gold coins are an example of legal tender that are traded for their intrinsic value, rather than their face value. (from Money)
Image 15Tibetan silver tangka with Ranjana (Lantsa) script, dated 15-28 (= AD 1894), obverse (from Tibetan tangka)
Image 16A 1914 British gold sovereign (from Money)
Image 17Punch-marked coins discovered from Chandraketugarh. (from Punch-marked coins)
Image 18US dollar banknotes (from Money)
Image 19Tibetan undated silver tangka (2nd half of 18th century) with eight times the syllable "dza" in vartula script, reverse (from Tibetan tangka)
Image 20Euro banknotes and coins (from Money)
Image 21Tibetan undated silver tangka, struck in 1953/54, obverse. (from Tibetan tangka)
Image 22"Bent bar" of the Gandhara Janapda unearthed with Achaemenid and Greek coins, Gandhara, c.350 BC. (from Punch-marked coins)
Image 23Tibetan "gaden" Tangka, undated (ca. AD 1840), obverse (from Tibetan tangka)
Image 24Money Base, M1 and M2 in the U.S. from 1981 to 2012 (from Money)
Image 25Silver, ½ Karshapana coin, “Babyal Hoard” type, of the Kuru Janapada (450 BC - 315 BC) (from Punch-marked coins)
Image 26Sino Tibetan silver tangka, dated 58th year of Qian Long era, obverse. Weight 5.57 g. Diameter: 30 mm (from Tibetan tangka)
Image 27A check, used as a means of converting funds in a demand deposit to cash (from Money)
Image 28Tibetan kong par tangka, dated 13-45 (= AD 1791), obverse (from Tibetan tangka)
Image 29Paper money from different countries (from Money)
Image 30Sino Tibetan silver tangka, dated 58th year of Qian Long era, reverse. Weight 5.57 g. Diameter: 30 mm (from Tibetan tangka)
Image 31Banknotes of different currencies with a face value of 5000 (from Money)
Image 32A 640 BC one-third stater electrum coin from Lydia. According to Herodotus, the Lydians were the first people to introduce the use of gold and silver coins. It is thought by modern scholars that these first stamped coins were minted around 650 to 600 BC. (from Money)
Image 33President J. K. Paasikivi illustrated in a former Finnish 10 mark banknote from 1980 (from Money)
Image 34Tibetan "gaden" Tangka, undated (ca. AD 1840), reverse (from Tibetan tangka)
Image 35“Babyal Hoard” type, of the Kuru Janapada (350 - 315 BCE) (from Punch-marked coins)

In the news

28 May 2025 – Corruption in Albania: Former Albanian president Ilir Meta is formally charged with corruption, money laundering, tax evasion, and concealing property from authorities. The charges were detailed in a report from anti-corruption prosecutors. Meta was arrested in October. (AP)