Currency money is money in full circulation that takes its value from the precious metal it contains, that is, its market value is (almost) the value of the metal it contains (apart from the
Seigniorage
Seigniorage , also spelled seignorage or seigneurage (from the Old French ''seigneuriage'', "right of the lord (''seigneur'') to mint money"), is the difference between the value of money and the cost to produce and distribute it. The term can be ...
or the minters' profit), though this is always overcompensated for in coins and banknotes from a country undergoing
debasement
A debasement of coinage is the practice of lowering the intrinsic value of coins, especially when used in connection with commodity money, such as gold or silver coins. A coin is said to be debased if the quantity of gold, silver, copper or nick ...
. Currency money is usually made of silver or gold, but in very rare cases plated metal and even copper may be used. Currency or face value coins are a type of
commodity money
Commodity money is money whose value comes from a commodity of which it is made. Commodity money consists of objects having value or use in themselves (intrinsic value) as well as their value in buying goods.
This is in contrast to representat ...
, money whose value is derived from the what it is or what it is made of (e.g. shell, cigarettes, tea or a certain metal) as opposed to coins whose metal value is less than their nominal value, paper money, and deposit or book money, which are
fiat money
Fiat money (from la, fiat, "let it be done") is a type of currency that is not backed by any commodity such as gold or silver. It is typically designated by the issuing government to be legal tender. Throughout history, fiat money was sometim ...
.
Currency
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