Bits (Currency)

The "bit" is the official currency of the planet Ijzeria. Bits themselves are not decimalised, although 100 bits make a "byte". Bytes are only used when discussing larger transactions. Simple everyday prices would be listed only in bits.

The currency symbol for the bit is a stylized lower case 'b' with two strikes through it.

## Denomination

The bit appears in multiple denominations and as both coins and bank notes. When they appear as bank notes, the value is equal to the number listed, times 100. So a "5" value bank note, is worth 500 bits; or 5 bytes.

Denominations of coins:

* 1 bit
* 5 bits
* 10 bits
* 25 bits
* 50 bits
* 1 byte (100 bits)
* 2 bytes (200 bits)

Denominations of bank notes:

* 5 bytes
* 10 bytes
* 20 bytes
* 50 bytes
* 100 bytes
* 200 bytes
* 1000 bytes (Rarely circulated. Also called a kilobyte.)

## Appearance

#### Coinage

Bits are round coins of varying sizes and colours. The coins appear in copper, silver, and gold coloured alloys. It's also somewhat common for them to be heat-treated to appear as another colour, such as blue or red, although over time this layer of colouration will wear away and expose the natural coppery/silvery/goldish colour underneath.

The standardisations on the appearance of coinage, are that the reverse of each coin must bear the official portrait of the reigning sovereign at the time it was minted; the coins must adhere to specific sizing requirements based on their denominations; and the alloys they are made of must adhere to specific chemical compositions based on their denominations. The design of the coin and what appears on the obverse side of the coin are totally up to the mint which is authorised to produce such a coin.

#### Bank Notes

Bank notes are uniform in size, and their borders and colouration are strictly controlled in order to prevent confusion as to their value. This is important since even the smallest bill is worth 2.5x the value of the largest coin. There is still room for a mint to express themselves however, since only the design of the 20 byte bank note is required to bear a specific likeness (that of the reigning sovereign at the time of its minting). All other bank notes are allowed to bear whatever designs or likenesses the mint prefers, so long as they are the appropriate size and colour and use the approved border design.

It is common for bank notes to feature cultural symbols or icons from the place in which they were minted, and there is no standardisation on what can and cannot be put on a bank note. The small island nation of of O'ugha, for example, is known for printing bank notes which feature popular special-interest entertainers. This makes their bank notes quite collectible among particularly lonely numismatists,

## The Golden Fiat and Rice Standard

The bit maintains its value through a combination of fiat and standard. This means that bits are valuable because The System demands that all taxes be paid in bits, and also because bits have a fixed exchange rate for food and utilities set by The System wherever possible.

The standard is not enforced through nationalisation of agriculture (although The System does directly own parts of certain industries), but through direct incentives to producers. Businesses which produce primary resources receive special tax breaks and rebates which are accessible only if they accept bits as the exchange currency. This creates a special incentive for the producers of consumables to promote and accept bits as currency, and is separate from the general exchange of goods and services, which are not part of this standardisation program.

In essence, this means that bits are valuable because everyone agrees they are valuable, and if you don't agree that they are valuable, then you can trade them in for food or water if you so desire, ensuring a minimum intrinsic value. The bizarre obsession that the average Ijzerian has with eating food every day seems to have kept the bit in a healthy place for thousands of years.

### Relative Valuation

The Systemic minimum wage is 16b an hour, or 96b in a working day. A middle class wage is 32b an hour, or 196b in a working day. An upper class wage is 128b an hour, or 768b in a working day. Someone making 256B or more an hour would be considered quite rich. Someone earning considerably more than this would be considered wealthy.

A lower class lifestyle would require 30b per day to maintain. A middle class lifestyle would require 100b per day to maintain. An upper class lifestyle would require 600b per day to maintain. This seeming disparity is caused by anti-poverty protections and regulations, coupled with a progressive tax bracket. Very few consumer items are truly expensive because producing them involves a lot of automation and machinery. Conversely, handicraft and artistry command high premiums due to the amount of skill and labour involved.

## Universal Pension

The "universal pension" is a financial benefit all Ijzerians receive starting at 25 years of age, and the primary method of introducing bits into general circulation. All Ijzerians RECEIVE bits, therefore, all Ijzerians can SPEND bits. This benefit exists in lieu of most other social programs, specifically old-age pension and unemployment insurance. It is paid for through corporate taxes and distributed evenly throughout the whole world. It fluctuates slightly up and slightly down based on the health of the world economy and its population, but it usually sits around 32b a day.

Successful implementation of the UP has all but erased hunger and homelessness, though there are still those who fall through the cracks of society, and require more financial or social assistance than the UP is prepared to provide. There is an ongoing debate on how to handle this financial mismatch, but overall the UP is working as intended.

The UP is managed by the ministry of remuneration, and is seen as the purvue of the Grand Pensionary.

## Role of the Bit in the World Economy

The exchange of the bit as liquid currency is the primary driver of economic activity on Ijzeria.

Ijzeria has a post-scarcity economy; a person's time is the only truly valuable thing. This doesn't mean that Ijzerians sit around doing nothing all day, in fact, quite the opposite. The people of Izjeria spend their time focussing on bettering themselves and their communities.

Almost all disposable income goes towards art and artists, athletics and contests, or handiwork and craftspeople. Economics revolves around advancing society and science, and the role that resource extraction and mass-production play is quite reduced by comparison.

The average Ijzerian is quite financially literate, and understands the value of their own skillset, as well as the value of what they want. This means most national economies are very strong, and cash exchange remains very high.

### **Financial Depression**

Global financial depression is exceptionally rare. Regional financial depression is not unheard of, and national financial depression occurs from time to time.

In the case of protracted financial depression within an area, the response of those living there is sometimes to tragically abandon their homes and seek better horizons. To a private citizen, national borders are simply parts of a map, and not legal boundaries. All Ijzerians are free to travel anywhere at any time, and they have the right to live wherever they wish. Leaving home for a stronger financial opportunity is quite common, but in some cases it can lead to entire towns being abandoned, or possibly whole cities.

Remarkably, the continent of Zant was almost entirely abandoned in the late 7890s, due to lack of financial opportunity. Currently, despite being the third largest continent by landmass, Zant is home to only two city-states (Saha'i and Uzoba), and a single nation (The Neon Coast) with a combined total of fewer than 20,000,000 permanent residents on the whole continent. There is a concerted effort by The System to reinvigorate Zant by aggressively investing in its remaining population centres.

## Trivia

* Bits made their in-game debut in Key of Ijzeria on the card Red Envelope//Paper Money Rush, but only in their bank note form.
* Bits in coin form still have not appeared in the game.