Here is a story about Venezuelans who are using gold in the wake of the Bolivar’s collapse. At today’s exchange rate of $1784 an ounce, a gram of gold is worth about $63.
Food for thought. Instead of gold flakes, it is a good idea to have silver for small purchases. Fractional gold is a good idea as well.
9 Comments
Toastrider · October 21, 2021 at 10:27 am
And I’ll wager that using gold is against the Venezuelan regime’s rules.
Brian_E · October 21, 2021 at 10:45 am
I suspect that using silver, gold, or even bartering will become illegal once the currency has crashed to zero value here – as the IRS has no way of readily tracking their use, and so can’t know how much taxes you owe. I suppose that going back to the feudal standard of what you owe the sovereign is whatever you can’t keep them from forcibly taking. That does seem to match the direction and pattern of behavior ‘our’ government is taking.
SiG · October 21, 2021 at 11:57 am
A 90% silver dime is worth about $2 today. That’s a pretty useful size.
Brian_E · October 21, 2021 at 2:01 pm
Especially for things like groceries or ammo. 😉
Divemedic · October 21, 2021 at 3:15 pm
If things get that bad, ammo and groceries will be more than $2
EN2 SS · October 21, 2021 at 5:11 pm
But I have more than one dime.
it's just Boris · October 22, 2021 at 3:55 am
It makes sense given the situation. If nothing else, carrying a small nugget of gold and a set of dykes is much more convenient than wheelbarrows of cash.
It’s not clear to me that one could expect silver to be accepted just because gold is, though. It sounds like the medium of exchange in various areas was adopted out of convenience, not forethought. In some ways, not dissimilar to pre-Euro travel in Europe. So I suppose the answer is to have a variety of media for exchange, and be prepared to be flexible.
Divemedic · October 22, 2021 at 7:45 am
Once currency is no longer accepted for whatever reason, the barter system takes over by necessity. I have done work in small towns in exchange for goods. I once repaired a butcher’s walk in freezer compressor in exchange for a freezer full of meat. I fixed the feed auger system in a chicken house in exchange for the cash to cover parts, plus a deal for 3 flats of eggs as compensation for labor.
I would imagine that, should the dollar fail, this system would be more widespread. Not everyone will have PMs.
Jonathan · October 22, 2021 at 8:04 am
Agreed.
I think the medium of exchange will vary based on local conditions and availability.
Whatever your medium of exchange is locally, be ready to use whole units or use some form of change – because I doubt that others will; if you have to round up for every transaction, it’ll add up quickly.
Also, containers will become scarce, so try to have bags, bottles, buckets, etc on hand for what you buy.
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