Money makes the world go around. From the earliest bartering systems to today's sophisticated electronic transfers of billions of dollars in a split second, systems of exchange have conferred value upon goods and services and created the economic glue that binds individuals, businesses, communities, and nations together. In this volume, the authors present a colorful history of money in its economic, political, socio-cultural, and even pscyhological context. The first section focuses on banks and financial institutions. The second part covers the role of currency in national sovereignty;...