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Tokens
Book

Tokens

The Future of Money in the Age of the Platform

Rachel O'Dwyer
Verso Books, 2023

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Editorial Rating

8

Qualities

  • Eye Opening
  • Overview
  • Background

Recommendation

In this tour of the world of alternative currencies, scholar Rachel O’Dwyer considers a wide variety of scrips, such as food stamps issued by the US government, V-bucks deployed in the video game Fortnite and vouchers used at brothels. It’s a fascinating look at what qualifies as money and what doesn’t. O’Dwyer analyzes these shadow forms of money – which now include bitcoin, Ethereum and even Amazon gift cards – within the context of an everchanging human society. The topic itself is sprawling, but readers will find this an illuminating overview.

Take-Aways

  • Tokens have long been a part of commerce.
  • Tokens have morphed from the physical world to the blockchain’s virtual realm.
  • Money is liquid; tokens, less so.

About the Author

Rachel O’Dwyer is a lecturer in digital cultures at the School of Visual Culture at the National College of Art and Design, Dublin. She was a Fulbright Scholar at UC Irvine and a Government of Ireland research scholar.

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