Reinventing the Market: Alternative Currencies and Community Development in Argentina

Abstract

Up until now, the vast majority of research on community currencies has focused upon their development in advanced economies. The aim of this short article, however, is to present some evidence on the growth of community currencies outside these western advanced economies. Reporting on the Global Exchange Network in Argentina, this paper shows how in just five years, this has exploded from a neighbourhood group of 20 people to a national network of 500 groups with over 230,000 participants exchanging skills, knowledge, goods and services. In so doing, it shows how “multi-reciprocal exchange”, facilitated not by Argentine Pesos but an alternative local currency, is growing in popularity not only in ‘northern’ advanced economies but also ‘southern’ nations.