The Legacy of the Bristol Pound

V.3, N.12

Readers who have asked for more coverage of local currencies will appreciate this week’s interview with Diana Finch, who has just written a book, Value Beyond Money, on her experiences presiding over the rise and fall of the Bristol Pound, one of the most ambitious local currency experiments in recent years. What was unique about the Bristol Pound was the involvement of the local government of Bristol, England. Civil servants were partially paid in the currency, and taxes could be partially paid in the currency, as well. Still, the municipality’s support didn’t last, and no business model for keeping the currency running on its own was ever developed. If your community wants to launch its own currency, you will appreciate the lessons Diana shares.

As always, our latest listings of U.S. local investment opportunities—both companies and funds—are below.

~ Michael Shuman, Publisher

If you ever watched the 2015 French documentary Demain (which means “tomorrow”), you may recall a section focusing on a local currency in the British City of Bristol. With nearly half a million residents, the city became the home of the Bristol Pound, one of the boldest recent experiments with homegrown money. In 2018, with the currency declining after its original meteoric success, a new managing director was brought in to try to turn things around. That person was Diana Finch, and she wrote about her experiences in a new book, Value Beyond Money, which will be available on August 1st. We’re pleased to interview her this week.

MS: Diana, congratulations on the publication of your important new book. Who is the book aimed at, and why did you decide to write it?

DF: I wanted to write the book as a legacy for the work of the organization I loved. We had so much learning from our experiences, and it seemed mean not to share that. I also wanted to write something that explains why people like the founders felt it was so important to develop the Bristol Pound. Though the currency was famous around the world with those interested in alternative currencies, back at home with everyday folk in Bristol, most people didn’t really understand what we were doing or why.