History of Financial

Finance as a study of theory and practice distinct from the field of economics arose in the 1940s and 1950s with the works of Markowitz, Tobin, Sharpe, Treynor, Black, and Scholes, to name just a few. But particular realms of finance—such as banking, lending, and investing, of course, money itself—have been around since the dawn of civilization in some form or another.

Around 3000 BC, banking seems to have originated in the Babylonian/Sumerian empire, where temples and palaces were used as safe places for the storage of financial assets—grain, cattle, and silver or copper ingots. Grain was the currency of choice in the country, while silver was preferred in the city.

The financial transactions of the early Sumerians were formalized in the Babylonian Code of Hammurabi (circa 1800 BC). This set of rules regulated ownership or rental of land, employment of agricultural labor, and credit. Yes, there were loans back then, and yes, interest was charged on them—rates varied depending on whether you were borrowing grain or silver.

By 1200 BC, cowrie shells were used as a form of money in China. Coined money was introduced in the first millennium BC. King Croesus of Lydia (now Turkey) was one of the first to strike and circulate gold coins around 564 BC—hence the expression, “rich as Croesus.”