LETS Passbook Communities: An Investigation of an Adaptation of the LETS Community Currency Mechanism

Abstract

While the 1990s international wave of LETS community currencies has largely subsided, within the grassroots nonprofit sector in Japan a LETS adaptation, previously observed in Halle Germany, has emerged as one model for the durable management of CCs in Japan. Using a multiple case study approach rooted in Grounded Theory, this paper investigates what separates this LETS Passbook adaptation from the classic LETS model, as well as what characteristics have encouraged its development in Japan over the last 20 years. It finds that, in stark contrast to the original LETS, the LETS Passbook system observed in Japan has far less stringent funding and administration requirements. Furthermore, it finds that a link to rural revitalization, a compatibility with Japanese cultural norms as well as the innate flexibility of the Passbook system have encouraged the long-term development of these 4 LETS Passbook communities in Japan.