Bartering

[Mortblanc]

And in that real life SHTF scenario, in the Bosnian War, a barter economy sprang up instantly!

Same happened in GB during both Wars and in Germany after WW2 in all sectors.

Same thing is happening in every part of the world where the normal supply and demand channels break down.

Most folks do not realize that the U.S. recognized the coin of every major power as specie until nearly 1840. We minted very little of our own coin and bartered most goods locally, then used the gold and silver of any nation we had on hand as hard money. Coins were cut into pieces to make smaller denominations and we still refer to .25 cents as "2 bits" due to the Spanish silver milled dollar usually being cut into 8 segments.

In the early days one could pay taxes, pay salaries and maintain accounts based on pounds of tobacco as the standard barter item. Bushels of corn were also used as a standard as well as deer skins. We still refer to our money as "bucks.