Money doesn’t make the world go ’round. But it’s definitely something that we all need day-to-day. So why is that so? Let’s look at some trivia and interesting facts about the history of how money and currency came to be that you can use for your next trivia night or icebreaker.
Money Trivia
Money is a big part of our everyday lives. We use it to exchange value and goods. So who created paper money in the first place? When did people start using coins and paper bills? Let’s look at some money facts and trivia that you might or might probably not know.
- What’s the largest bill ever circulated by the Federal reserve? $10,000 notes
- What dollar bill does Benjamin Franklin appear on? $100
- What country’s currency has suffered the most from inflation? Venezuela with 200,000% inflation
- What’s the biggest loss the New York stock exchange has experienced in all time? 89% during the 1929 crash
- What currency has had the highest value? Kuwaiti Dinar
- When did the U S government first release the U S currency? 1792
- Which of the commemorative coins are worth the most? 1794 Flowing Hair dollar worth $42,500 in good condition
- What do the 13 arrows on the US Dollar represent? 13 original states
Money Trivia Questions and Answers
Look in the world’s currency collection, the history of the Dollar, origins of real money, U S bureau policies on money, the face value of certain notes, and more in this massive collection of trivia questions and answers.
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| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| What is the origin of the word “money”? | â–¶ moneta |
| Where was the world’s first paper money created? | â–¶ China over 1000 years ago |
| What was the first official currency in the world? | â–¶ The shekel |
| What is the origin of the term “dollar”? | â–¶ Thaler |
| What is the world’s most valuable currency? | â–¶ The Kuwaiti Dinar (KWD) |
| What is the world’s oldest still-existing currency? | â–¶ The British Pound Sterling (GBP) |
| What was the term “bit” originally used to represent? | â–¶ A binary digit in early computing |
| What is the origin of the “greenback” nickname? | â–¶ The color of the US currency |
| What is the origin of the $ symbol for the US dollar? | â–¶ From the Spanish “peso” |
| What is the world’s largest banknote? | â–¶ The 100,000 Hungarian forint |
| What is the world’s smallest banknote? | â–¶ The 1 Nepalese rupee |
| Who created the first credit card? | â–¶ The Diners Club in 1950 |
| What is the world’s most expensive coin? | â–¶ The 1794 Flowing Hair Silver Dollar |
| What is the most widely-used currency in the world? | â–¶ The US dollar |
| How many member states of the European Union use the Euro? | â–¶ 19 |
| What is the origin of the term “economy”? | â–¶ The Greek word “oikonomia,” meaning “household management” |
| When was the first ATM installed? | â–¶ In London in 1967 |
| Who issued the first paper money in the United States? | â–¶ The Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1690 |
| How many notes does the US government print per day? | â–¶ Approximately 38 million |
| How many coins does the US Mint produce per year? | â–¶ Approximately 28 billion |
| What is the study and collection of coins and currency called? | â–¶ Numismatics |
| Where was the world’s first stock exchange established? | â–¶ Amsterdam in 1602 |
| Where was the world’s first modern bank established? | â–¶ Italy in 1472 |
| Where was the first recorded use of paper money? | â–¶ In the Tang Dynasty of China, in the 7th century |
| Where was the first recorded use of metal coins? | â–¶ Lydia in the 7th century BCE |
| What is currency that is not backed by a physical commodity? | â–¶ “fiat money” |
| What is “the general increase in prices of goods and services”? | â–¶ Inflation |
| What is “the general decrease in prices of goods and services”? | â–¶ Deflation |
| What do you call “extremely high and rapid inflation rates”? | â–¶ Hyperinflation |
| What do you call a period of slow economic growth and high inflation rates? | â–¶ Stagflation |
| What is a deliberate decrease in the value of a currency? | â–¶ Currency Devaluation |
| What year was the two dollar bill last printed in the United States? | â–¶ 2014 |
| What building is found on the back of a United States 100 dollar bill? | â–¶ Independence Hall |
| What is the official currency of the country Ecuador? | â–¶ United States Dollar |
| What is the Spanish word for money? | â–¶ Dinero |
| Which President is on the United States 1,000 dollar bill? | â–¶ Grover Cleveland |
| Who was at the top of Forbes 2015 list of the richest people in the world? | â–¶ Bill Gates |
| What is the name of the official currency of Costa Rica? | ▶ Costa Rican Colón |
| Created in 2009, what was the first decentralized cryptocurrency? | â–¶ Bitcoin |
| What is the name for the monetary unit used in Thailand? | â–¶ Thai Bhat |
| What was the first publicly traded U.S. company to reach a $1 trillion market cap? | â–¶ Apple |
| What are the most expensive credit cards in terms of annual fees in the world? | ▶ The Centurion® Card from American Express or Black Card with a $5000 annual fee |
| How much Monopoly money is in each game box? | â–¶ $20,580 |
| What year was the US federal reserve created? | â–¶ 1913 |
| What precious metals were the first coins made out of? | â–¶ Electrum, an alloy of silver and gold |
| During the Civil War, the United States and the Confederate States suspended the use of what as payment? | â–¶ Gold |
| What’s the world’s oldest currency? | â–¶ The British pound |
| What flightless bird is featured on New Zealand’s one dollar coin? | â–¶ Kiwi |
| Spanish silver dollars, originally called the Spanish peso, were each worth how many Spanish reales? | â–¶ Eight |
| What was the first country to use printed paper currency? | â–¶ China |
| What was the name of the currency used in Spain before the euro? | â–¶ Pesetas |
| Before the introduction of the euro, what was the name for the basic monetary unit used in the Netherlands? | â–¶ Guilder |
| What is the world’s most traded currency? | â–¶ The US dollar |
| How many official currencies does the world have? | â–¶ 180 |
| What is the difference between “hard money” and “soft money”? | â–¶ Hard money is backed by a physical commodity, while soft money is not. |
| What is a “bearer bond”? | â–¶ A bond that is payable to whoever holds it, rather than to a named owner. |
| What is a “zero-coupon bond”? | â–¶ A bond that pays no interest, but is sold at a discount to its face value. |
| What is the world’s oldest central bank? | â–¶ Sweden’s Riksbank |
| Who is the person on the US $100 bill? | â–¶ Benjamin Franklin |
| Who is the person on the US $1 bill? | â–¶ George Washington |
| Who is the person on the US $20 bill? | â–¶ Andrew Jackson |
| Who is the person on the US $10 bill? | â–¶ Alexander Hamilton |
| Who is the person on the US $5 bill? | â–¶ Abraham Lincoln |
| What is a bond that is payable to whoever holds it, rather than to a named owner? | â–¶ Bearer Bond |
| What is bond that pays no interest, but is sold at a discount to its face value? | â–¶ Zero-coupon bond |
| What is a banking system in which only a fraction of deposited funds are held in reserve, while the rest are used for lending? | â–¶ Fractional reserve system |
| What is a monetary system in which the value of currency is fixed to a certain amount of gold? | â–¶ Gold standard |
| What is the international monetary system established in 1944, which fixed exchange rates to the US dollar and made it the world’s reserve currency? | â–¶ Bretton Woods system |
| What is the dilemma that arises when a country’s currency is the world’s reserve currency, as it must supply enough currency to meet global demand, but doing so can lead to domestic inflation? | â–¶ Triffin dilemma |
| What is a monetary policy tool used by central banks to increase the money supply by purchasing government bonds or other securities? | â–¶ Quantitative easing |
| What is the curve that shows the relationship between tax rates and government revenue, at a certain point, further tax increases actually lead to a decrease in revenue? | â–¶ Laffer curve |
| What is an illegal market in which goods or services are traded without government regulation or oversight? | â–¶ Black market |
| What is a market in which goods or services are traded outside of official channels, but are still legal? | â–¶ Grey market |
| What is an investment fund that uses high-risk strategies to generate high returns for its investors? | â–¶ Hedge fund |
| What is a market in which prices are rising and investor confidence is high? | â–¶ Bull market |
| What is a market in which prices are falling and investor confidence is low? | â–¶ Bear market |
| What is a financial instrument whose value is derived from the value of an underlying asset, such as a stock or commodity? | â–¶ Derivative |
| What is the practice of buying and selling assets in different markets to take advantage of price differences? | â–¶ Arbitrage |
| What is the act of buying or selling securities based on non-public information? | â–¶ Insider trading |
| What is the smallest paper bill denomination in USD? | â–¶ $1 |
| What is the largest paper bill denomination in USD? | â–¶ $100 |
| What is the most widely used currency in the world? | â–¶ US Dollar |
| What is the name of the currency used in Japan? | â–¶ Yen |
| What is the name of the currency used in Australia? | â–¶ Australian Dollar |
| What is the name of the currency used in Switzerland? | â–¶ Swiss Franc |
| What is the name of the currency used in India? | â–¶ Indian Rupee |
| What is the name of the currency used in Mexico? | â–¶ Mexican Peso |
| What is the name of the currency used in Russia? | â–¶ Russian Ruble |
| What is the name of the currency used in Brazil? | â–¶ Brazilian Real |
| What is the name of the currency used in South Africa? | â–¶ South African Rand |
| What is the name of the currency used in South Korea? | â–¶ South Korean Won |
| What is the name of the currency used in China? | â–¶ Chinese Yuan |
| What is the name of the currency used in Canada? | â–¶ Canadian Dollar |
| What is the name of the currency used in the UK? | â–¶ Pound Sterling |
| What is the name of the currency used in the European Union? | â–¶ Euro |
| What is the name of the currency used in New Zealand? | â–¶ New Zealand Dollar |
| What is the name of the currency used in Sweden? | â–¶ Swedish Krona |
| What is the name of the currency used in Norway? | â–¶ Norwegian Krone |
| What is the name of the currency used in Denmark? | â–¶ Danish Krone |
About the Author
Tim majored in Humanities with a bachelor in English and Theatre at New York State University. He lectured on entertainment business studies for three years at Plymouth College.
Tim has been a trivia host in his current hometown of Pittsburgh for the past two years. He enjoys hanging out with people who love trivia just as much as he does.
His friends call him the Question Master.
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