History of Commerce

The history of commerce: From trading shells to buying iPhones

1.Paper Currency

Paper currency was first used by the Chinese during the Tang Dynasty as a form of ​promissory note, but it took another century or so for it to really catch on and ​evolve into the kind of currency we know today. It wasn’t until the 1100s, during the ​Song Dynasty, that government-produced paper money made an appearance. One ​lure of paper currency was that it was easier to transport than heavy coins or shells.

2.Currency

The first coins, resembling the form of currency we know today, are believed to ​have originated in Sardis, Ancient Lydia (now Turkey). At that time Sardis was a ​major commercial hub “for the traffic of goods and ideas between Mesopotamia ​and the Greek Ionian settlements.” Herodotus wrote of the Lydians, “They were the ​first men whom we know who coined and used gold and silver currency; and they ​were the first to sell by retail.” Their coins were created from electrum a naturally ​occurring alloy of gold and silver and stamped with the images of gods and ​emperors for authenticity.

3. The Modern Corporation

The East India Company was the first institution with what we think of today as a ​modern corporate structure. It was the first official joint-stock corporation composed ​of investors who then receive dividends based on the company’s profit and was ​established as a limited liability corporation (LLC) to protect those investors.

4. Credit Cards

Credit cards today allow cardholders to carry a monthly balance forward for an added ​finance charge. The first appearance of credit cards, in the mid-20th century, was from ​banker John Biggins, who introduced the Charg-It card. His bank became the middle man that ​reimbursed merchants and obtained payment from customers (this is called a “closed-loop ​system”).

5. Ecommerce Growth

By 1999, the Census began requesting ecommerce data as part of the overall economic picture. ​Most major stores had launched ecommerce shops and small businesses were beginning to ​develop their own. The evolution of online payments, like the launch of PayPal in 1998, helped ​rocket ecommerce’s popularity. The number of people shopping online went from 13% in 2000 ​to 21% in 2001. Amazon then launched its first mobile commerce site in 2001 and introduced ​Amazon Prime in 2005.

6. More Options than ever

Today, consumers can buy just about anything, from just about anywhere across the globe ​and get it shipped to your front door through a simple online transaction. These ​transactions can even be conducted through various social media platforms. And the ​popularity of shopping via a mobile device is growing fast.