It involves all prices being expressed in the same unit, usually called a unit of value, in exactly the same way as we need a standardised way of measuring distance. Money also has to have a stable value (money must be a “store of value”), as this makes it possible to postpone consumption. It also needs to be accepted by everybody. It must be easily accessible and easy to use (it must act as a general means of payment). For a long time, the most common form of money was coinage issued on royal authority, with its value being determined by its metal content. In Sweden, the copper standard was introduced at the start of the 17th century, in addition to the silver and gold standards that already existed. 5 But handling the copper coins proved to be clumsy, which contributed towards King Charles X Gustav granting permission, in 1656, for the formation of Sweden’s first bank, Stockholms Banco, which was allowed to accept coins in exchange for promissory notes. These promissory notes soon started to be used as money, as they were much easier to carry  It is unclear how common barter was in early, primitive economies but we know that money appeared several thousand years ago. See, for example, Humphrey (1985) “Barter and Economic Disintegration”. Man, New Series, Vol. 20, No. 1. 3 See Camera, G. (2017). “A perspective on electronic alternatives to traditional currencies”. Sveriges Riksbank Economic Review 2017:1.
In addition, the decline in the growth of loans to the private sector has come to a halt and credit demand has recently strengthened. These developments need to be closely monitored, as they may start to point to upward risks to price stability, in particular during a period of economic recovery. BIS Review 40/2002  1  Overall, the outlook for price stability is now less benign than it was in November 2001, when we last adjusted the key ECB interest rates. Inflation has so far declined less steeply and less rapidly than we expected at the turn of the year. This has been partly due to the temporary factors I mentioned before, and to the renewed increase in oil prices in the first quarter of 2002. At the current juncture, even though the appreciation of the exchange rate of the euro will contribute to easing inflationary pressures, we will continue to closely monitor all relevant developments, against the background of the risk that the deviations from price stability, which followed the exceptional clustering of upward shocks on inflation over the past couple of years, may be transmitted into longer-term inflation expectations, thereby potentially affecting wage and price-setting behaviour. In order to maintain price stability, it is crucial that wage moderation prevails in the future. In this respect, we are concerned about recent trends in wages. The importance of wage developments in line with our definition of price stability cannot be overemphasised.