Coined: The Rich Life of Money and How Its History Has Shaped Us

by Kabir Sehgal

Overview

A New York Times and Wall Street Journal Bestseller

From New York Times bestselling author Kabir Sehgal, an informative, rousing, surprising history of the one thing that makes the world go 'round: money.

The importance of money in our lives is readily apparent to everyone—rich, poor, and in between. However grudgingly, we are all aware of the power of money—how it influences our moods, compels us to take risks, and serves as the yardstick of success in societies around the world. Yet because we take the daily reality of money so completely for granted, we seldom question how and why it has come to play such a central role in our lives.

In Coined: The Rich Life of Money And How Its History Has Shaped Us, author Kabir Sehgal casts aside our workaday assumptions about money and takes the reader on a global quest to uncover a deeper understanding of the relationship between money and humankind. More than a mere history of its subject, Coined probes the conceptual origins and evolution of money by examining it through the multiple lenses of disciplines as varied as biology, psychology, anthropology, and theology. Coined is not only a profoundly informative discussion of the concept of money, but it is also an endlessly fascinating and entertaining take on the nature of humanity and the inner workings of the mind.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781455578528
Publisher:	Grand Central Publishing
Publication date:	03/10/2015
Pages:	336
Product dimensions:	6.10(w) x 9.10(h) x 1.30(d)

About the Author

Kabir Sehgal is a vice president in emerging market equities at J.P. Morgan in New York. He serves as an officer in the United States Navy Reserve, served as a speechwriter on a presidential campaign, and is a term member of the Council on Foreign Relations. He is the New York Times bestselling author of books including Walk in My Shoes (with Andrew Young) and Jazzocracy. A Grammy-winning producer who has performed with Grammy-winning musicians as a jazz bassist, he co-founded an arts organization which merged with the Afro Latin Jazz Alliance. Sehgal is a graduate of Dartmouth College and the London School of Economics.

Table of Contents

Foreword ix

Introduction 1

Part I Mind: The Roots of an Idea

Chapter 1 It's a Jungle Out There: The biology of exchange 13

Chapter 2 A piece of My Mind: The psychology of money 39

Chapter 3 So in Debt: The anthropology of debt 67

Part II Body: The material Forms of Money

Chapter 4 Hard and Heavy: A brief history of hard money 97

Chapter 5 Some Like It Soft: A brief history of soft money 125

Chapter 6 Back to the Future: The future of money 163

Part III Soul: A Symbol of Values

Chapter 7 Angel Investors: Religion and money 197

Chapter 8 Gilt Complex: The art on money 227

Epilogue 253

Acknowledgments 255

List of Illustrations 258

Selected Bibliography 259

Notes 265

Index 303

About the Author 319

Editorial Reviews

The scope of information [Sehgal's] distilled is remarkable, and it may just be the multiplicity of beer-drinking scenes that help the drier hunks go down smoothly. He's not unaware of his privilege, and his thoughtfulness comes as a pleasant surprise, particularly in the latter half of the book, where he introduces a gang of numismatists—coin collectors—whose hobby in the social food chain probably ranks somewhere below gold bugs and just above Civil War re-enactors. Sehgal is respectful, even affectionate toward these oddballs. He understands, and perhaps identifies with their mission—to understand history, and human beings, by looking closely at their money. And you can't argue with his conclusion: "Money is like blood," he writes. "You need it to live, but it isn't the point of life."

The New York Times Book Review - Jessica Pressler

01/05/2015
Investment banker Sehgal (Walk in My Shoes) undertakes a broad survey of topics connected (sometimes loosely) to money in its various functions as a medium of exchange, store of value, token of obligation, and even cultural artifact. Sehgal begins by reviewing fundamental biological exchanges such as the operation of mitochondria and the “evolution of cooperation,” before turning to the psychology of financial decision making and the “anthropology of debt,” the latter exemplified by elaborate Japanese conventions of gifts and social obligations. He examines competing historical views of money as “hard” or “soft” and their respective limitations and dangers, including the seductive, stimulative “alchemy” of expanding the money supply with soft money—which, unlike the hard variety, is not backed by an intrinsically valuable asset. He then looks at the future of money from alternately bearish and bullish points of view. Finally, Sehgal touches on money’s ethical aspects, and its artistic function in expressing national identity and aspirations. Sprinkled with light anecdotes and illustrations from the author’s global travels for his banking day job, the book, Sehgal concedes, “does not advance a grand theory.” Indeed, it would have been strengthened by greater integration of its disparate elements. Nevertheless, Sehgal may encourage the general reader to join him in thinking “about an ancient topic in new ways.” Agent: Gillian MacKenzie, Gillian MacKenzie Agency. (Mar.)

Publishers Weekly

"Sehgal is a tireless and eloquent guide, and knows just how long to stay at each stop."—Financial Times

"If you've been waiting for an economic version of Eat, Pray, Love, this may be it."—The New York Times Book Review

"An exceptional examination of the history of money. Kabir has written an engaging narrative that spans thousands of years and introduces readers to important people who have impacted the chronicle of currency."—Jimmy Carter, Former US President

"Kabir Sehgal has tackled the topic of money and written a fascinating account that weaves together history, philosophy, and personal anecdotes. He provides insights that are both riveting and thought-provoking."—Walter Isaacson, bestselling author of Steve Jobs and President of the Aspen Institute

"Kabir Sehgal has done us a great service in writing this book. He has presented in this book everything that money has meant to people over the centuries and with a multidimensional perspective. He has prepared the ground for us to take it forward, to give new meaning to money, to assign it new roles in our lives, and imagine the future of money as a foundation upon which we can build the future of the world we all cherish. Thank you, Kabir."—Muhammad Yunus, Nobel Peace Prize Laureate, Founder of Grameen Bank (from foreword)

"Coined doesn't resemble any of the usual text books on money. For one thing, it's actually fun to read—and Kabir Sehgal will stimulate your thinking about our financial crisis and banking."—Paul Volcker, Former Chair of the Federal Reserve

"Coined is a world history of currency that looks at the different forms money takes across time and across cultures. Mr. Sehgal's anecdotes are wide-ranging and include the birth of exchange in the Galapagos Islands; the art sought after by coin collectors in Vietnam; a tour of the Federal Reserve's vaults in New York; and the way bees trade pollen in the hive."—Bill Clinton, Former US President

"The best things in life are free, but ever since civilization began money has had a profound impact on humanity. Kabir's book brings the story of currency to life and is worth spending a few of your hard-earned coins on."—Sir Richard Branson, Founder, Virgin Group

"Well-written. Clever. Innovative. This amazing book will get you thinking about money in completely new ways. If you want to understand how money has impacted the human condition, for better or worse, and how it will continue to shape our behavior, read this book."—Sheila Bair, Former Chair of the Federal Deposit Corporation

"Kabir Sehgal has created an ideal book for anyone interested in understanding how money has impacted our world. His thought provoking and impressive writing style makes this an enjoyable and educational read."—William H. Rogers, Chairman & CEO, SunTrust Banks

From the Publisher

02/15/2015
Sehgal worked for Lehman Brothers and had a front-row seat when it failed. Now a vice president with J.P. Morgan, the author has a self-professed obsession to understand money. This book was written not to be a definitive work but to spark the reader's curiosity about the subject. Divided into three sections, it covers the mind (why—biology, psychology, and anthropology), the body (what—hard, soft, and future), and the soul (how—values and creativity) of money. From the history of currency as a storage of surplus value to the future of it as digital legal tender, Sehgal investigates it all with best- and worst-case scenarios. Using a bit of a scattergun approach, he takes the reader from the Galápagos Islands, the vaults under New York City, and excavations in Bangladesh as he shows that money is a symbol of what man values. While the study of money can be a never-ending pursuit, the author acknowledges that just as humankind has shaped and created money, so money has shaped and created civilization. VERDICT While not an exhaustive discussion of money's history and future, Sehgal's book is a worthwhile treatment for the curious.—Bonnie A. Tollefson, Rogue Valley Manor Lib., Medford, OR

Library Journal

2014-12-21
Sehgal (Jazzocracy: Jazz, Democracy, and the Creation of a New American Mythology, 2008, etc.), a vice president for emerging market equities at J.P Morgan, opens up the toolbox of his trade in this wide-ranging discussion of money and its instrumental function through human history.The author offers a traditional definition of money as "a medium of exchange, unit of account, and store of value," which he attributes to the 19th-century British economist William Stanley Jevons. However, there's nothing traditional about Sehgal's elaboration. Beginning with biology, anthropology and psychology in the form of modern neuroscience, the author compares money as currency, or flow, to the energy flows in biological and botanical processes (photosynthesis and cellular respiration). "Money may be an evolutionary substitute for energy," writes the author. His unconventional approach turns more practical when he discusses the moral, ethical and cultural values associated with money and its uses in the world's major religions and ethical system. He cites the Sermon on the Mount—"blessed are the poor in spirit for theirs is the kingdom of heaven"—and the laws of Moses (greed is a sin). In between, Sehgal reviews the history of money, from commodity trade to paper forms, to develop broader implications of money as an instrument symbolizing human thought and activity. He worries that "[m]oney is becoming more electronic and invisible. It has become so abstract that we risk forgetting the concrete lessons of history. As long as money remains a symbol of value, some will seek to control it." The author traces a conflict between two views of money: one which argues that money has, or should have, an intrinsic value derived from nature, the other which asserts that money is a political creation, as President Richard Nixon did in 1971 when he unpegged the dollar from gold. A lively account with an unconventional viewpoint.

Kirkus Reviews