Time = Money

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This article talks about the time bank in Woodstock. The Woodstock Time Bank started in April 29, 2007. This bank supports a type of bartering system which uses time instead of money. Time Dollars were invented by Edgar S. Cahn in 1980. So far, over 6,300 hours of service has been exchanged. People trade services for services and, by helping someone in need they end up recieving help in their time of need. Time money has been widely accepted by people in regions where they have been implemented. They provide people with an alternative and allow them to retain their stash of money.

The time bank relates to the use of the barter system and a new currency. By commuting an hour to the bank the volunteer earns an hour of service. The time bank uses time as a currency. Time used as money is durable, simple, not easily copied, recognizable, and divisible. Most people would accept it as a way of payment and would consider it to be valuable. Furthermore, by trading services and time, no real money is either used or involved. This is especially appealing because no exchange of money means no taxation or involvement of other agencies. Lesser exchanges made with money while beneficial to many people, don't affect the GDP and could actually be detrimental to the economy. As people lose faith in money it is only natural for them to turn to other systems such as bartering.


The Time Bank seems like an idea with lots of potential. Time buys money and money buys others' time. By directly trading time for time, taxation can be avoided and the transaction can be made more smoothly and efficiently. For example, if a builder needed some plumbing work done he could just go and build something for someone else and, have in return, a plumber come in and fix his problem. Had the builder tried to fix his plumbing problem by himself he would end up wasting more time and even then, there would be no guarantee that he would succeed. Trading services allow people to save more of both money and time. Moreover, if someone who needed service couldn't afford it he could just pay for it by time. The only downside of Time money to consumers is probably the fact that it cannot be used to purchase goods. However, if the idea keeps gaining popularity it may even be possible to buy and sell Time money in the future. The concept of Time money is very interesting and I, myself, wouldn't mind using time as currency.