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In economics, a time-based currency is an alternative currency where the unit of exchange is the hour.

Time-based currencies value everyone’s contributions equally. One hour equals one service credit. In these systems, one person volunteers to work for an hour for another person; thus, they are credited with one hour, which they can redeem for an hour of service from another volunteer.

Time Dollars are created via mutual credit: Each transaction is recorded as a corresponding credit and debit in the accounts of the participants. In a Time Dollars system, or Time Bank, each participant's time is valued equally, whether she/he is a novice or an extensively trained expert. Time Dollars thus recognize and encourage reciprocal community service, resist inflation without encouraging hoarding, and are in sufficient supply, which enables trade and cooperation among participants. More importantly, the Time Bank is a tool for reweaving the very fabric of community. The tool has proven to be extremely flexible, working equally well across ethnic, socioeconomic, religious or racial groups. It has been implemented in a wide variety of settings - rural Appalachia, urban St. Louis, in Youth Court, and in retirement communities, to name a few.

Edgar Cahn came up with Time Dollars as "a new currency to provide a solution to massive cuts in government spending on social welfare. If there was not going to be enough of the old money to fix all the problems facing our country and our society", Edgar reasoned, "why not make a new kind of money to pay people for what needs to be done? Time Dollars value everyone’s contributions equally. One hour equals one service credit. "

He wrote books titled "Our Brother’s Keeper" and "No More Throw-Away People", and believes that everyone has something of value to share with neighbors. For more information about the national Time Dollar movement, check out www.timebanks.org.

In the United Kingdom the plans are called timebanking, time banks and hour banks. There are reported to be 75 plans running in the UK, with 30 operating in Greater London. They are promoted as a tool in community regeneration.

The micronation of Lovely set up by Danny Wallace uses this type of currency known as the Interdependent Occupational Unit (IOU). These have been given out by posting on the country's site's message boards. However, no use of these IOUs have been announced.

• Labour-time voucher
• Local currency
• LETS
• Ripple monetary system
• List of economics topics
• Cincinnati Time Store
• Ithaca Hours
• Fourth Corner Exchange

• Time Dollars comic book
• TimeBanks USA
• Timebanks.co.uk
• Value For People Community Currency, Time Banking and Co-Production specialists
• The London Timebank Network
• Time Currency by Kingdom of Time
• Adding simple and effective trust measurements to F2F P2P networks is a paper about using a Time-based currency for trust in F2F P2P computer networks.
• Kroonos.com Time currency project, created in Spain.