THINGS USED AS A CURRENCY

BEADS

Legend has it that Dutch settlers bought the island of Manhattan from

the natives using beads.

COCAINE

In the mountains of Colombia there are places where cocaine is

actually more convenient to use as currency than actual currency.

BOTTLE CAPS

Just like the phone cards, some places in Africa use beer bottle caps

as currency, especially since the breweries started printing bonus

prizes under the caps in an attempt to copy Coca Cola.

CANADIAN TIRE MONEY

When Canada Tire started offering their fake looking money as a

consumer loyalty program they probably didn’t anticipate the fact

that small businesses all over Canada would start accepting it.

You can even use it as an official form of payment on eBay Canada.

MACKEREL

Often used in prisons as currency it goes by the name “mack”.

No one is really sure why the fish achieved such a status apart from

the fact that one pack costs about a dollar and nobody wants

to eat any of it.

QUID

It stands for Quasi Universal Intergalactic Denomination and was

invented by currency specialist Travelex as a form of currency

to be used in space.

BUCKSKINS

Along with beaver pelts this was one of the most popular currencies

in the new world. In fact, the slang term for the American dollar, the

“buck”, can be traced back to this practice.

POTATO MASHERS

As strange as it sounds they were used as currency by the

Bafia people who used to inhabit the modern day Republic of Cameroon.