In return I received a shiny TTC token (bringing my stockpile to 8, in case you’re counting):
On Bunz Currencies
People have a wide range of opinions on the use of tokens and giftcards within Bunz. The discussion is illuminating—because it gives those of us who aren’t economists the chance to re-examine how we think about money, and our relationship with it, in a context that is real-world, and not abstract. It also sheds light on the disparate and shifting values of the Bunz collective.Bunz has one explicit rule: ‘No money allowed in this zone.’ (In reality it’s not the only rule; fraud, incivility, harassment, and discriminatory behaviour tends to result in ejection from the community.)
In a vibrant barter system like Bunz, the coincidence of wants issue looms large. The constant deluge of posts imposes a time-constraint of sorts. It’s true that you can search previous posts, but far too often what you’re trying to trade (for or away) gets buried under an avalanche of new material.
Inevitably, de facto currencies have emerged. Within Bunz, these are primarily TTC tokens [note for non-Torontonians: tokens are used on our transit system], booze (tallcans), and giftcards.
Many within Bunz strongly disagree with the use of these for trading, arguing that their close equivalence to cash violates the rule and spirit of Bunz. They contend that “item for item” is the essential quality of a proper Bunz trade.
Tokens
Let’s take a step back. What are the classic attributes that define money?Money is:
- a medium of exchange
- a store of value
- a unit of account
By these measures, tokens can certainly be considered to be ‘money’ and thus verboten. Philosophically speaking, it is the ‘unit of account’ aspect that grinds against the Bunz grain. Part of the whimsical joy of the group is that conventional monetary values are (to a degree) set aside in favour of perceived use-value. When goods are relentlessly quantified, this dilutes the neighbourly quality of trading in Bunz—where exchanges are often completed with the intention of doing the other party a good turn. That is to say, trading in Bunz is not always purely about the economic transaction.
Nevertheless... tokens are useful, and I’ll trade for them, as well as use them to trade for items. What I won’t do is purchase tokens: I never purchase anything for the purpose of trading.
How do I justify trading in tokens? For me, their utility outweighs the ‘cash equivalence’ factor.
First, although tokens have a direct monetary value, the fungibility only goes one way—you can’t (easily) spend tokens like money, outside of Bunz. I can’t pay for my groceries with tokens!
Second, tokens have a defined end-purpose, which is to provide the bearer with a ride on the TTC. Ultimately they get consumed. Any token that enters the Bunz economy will eventually exit it via the TTC. It’s entirely valid for someone to trade items for a token’s intrinsic service worth. [Side comment: tokens are expected to disappear in 2017-18 with the full rollout of PRESTO, so they also have an expiry date of sorts]
Third, and most importantly, as a temporary store of value, tokens enable trades to take place that would not otherwise have occurred. In other words more people get what they want.
Consider the scenario where A has an apple and wants to trade for B’s banana, but B doesn’t want it. Without money, the trade doesn’t happen. But if you allow trading with tokens, it can, and 3 people benefit. [The side positive of the 2nd scenario is, the token remains within Bunz, potentially able to continue circulating and greasing other trades]
Lastly, I don’t use tokens on the TTC anyway — I’m a longtime Metropass user. I don’t personally gain in a strict monetary savings sense from collecting tokens; I can only use them to effectuate more trades. And more trades means more people getting rid of stuff they don’t want, which fulfils a key value for Bunz.
[Bonus thought: as I continue my Bunz adventures, I find that I’ve actually managed to fulfil many of my ISO longings. So tokens become an increasingly simpler item to trade for, allowing me to ‘defer’ figuring out what I actually want, while still getting rid of stuff I don’t want]
That’s why I personally don’t have an issue with trading tokens. Similar reasoning applies to booze: I’m mostly a teetotaller, so anything I amass is only going to get re-injected into Bunz anyway.
Giftcards: a slippery slope
Giftcards are more problematic to me. This might be contradictory in light of my rationalizations in regards to tokens, but for whatever reason the direct translation from cash to digital credit is too strong for me to wave off perfunctorily.Will I purchase giftcards in order to make a trade happen? No.
Am I willing to receive giftcards as part of a trade? The answer, hypocritical as it might be, is yes. I’ll take grocery giftcards. And I’ll consider giftcards for stores where I know I have an imminent purchase that I was going to make regardless. But I’ll never ask for a specific giftcard amount as an ISO.
With groceries — hey, a guy’s gotta eat. Every day. I guarantee I’m using grocery giftcards for food. If you trade me groceries for something, you’re feeding me; it’s the same as if you traded me a bunch of bananas. So I don’t interpret grocery giftcards (in the Bunz ethical sense) as ‘money’.
Also, people often receive (as gifts, haha) specific store-affiliated giftcards that they’ll never use. Who am I to say they can’t trade those cards for something useful to them?
Conclusion
I acknowledge there are Bunz out there who feel I’m wrong to trade in tokens and giftcards. Who feel that it’s a violation of the Bunz community spirit. That’s a legitimate perspective, and I respect Bunz who hold it. They are free to trade accordingly.I however have a more liberal attitude. And I won’t spend any money in pursuit of trades [Update: later on in Trade 28 I arguably broke this rule].
Happy trading, folks!
Next— Trade 18: Goat with rice from Vena's, for suitcase
Previous—bunz.com officially launched!
Gallery of Trades
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