Roles of Currency
When forms of currency are mentioned, it is in one of two capacities:
- A means of internal budget allocation in the United Federation of Planets, such as in the Star Trek: The Original Series episode "Errand of Mercy". While it has almost unlimited resources, they have been shown to be finite (such as having limited numbers of starships), and thus some method of allocating Federation and Starfleet resources must be used.
- A way for Federation citizens to barter for objects that cannot be replicated, such as live animals, such as in the Star Trek: The Original Series episode "The Trouble with Tribbles", or for services that are far too costly to be given away freely, such as hiring the services of an entire starship (Star Trek III: The Search for Spock), or for the use of facilities (such as public transporters) that are in high demand and must have a method of rationing their access, such as in the Star Trek: Deep Space Nine episode "Explorers".
Furthermore, the Federation credit does not appear to serve the role of capital as money does in a capitalist economy: production is not based on the accumulation of capital for reinvestment of production; instead production is undertaken to satisfy human needs, and the Federation credit is likely more akin to a Labour voucher - a means for distributing / rationing goods for individual consumption. Alternatively, the credit may serve as a means of quantifying energy.
It is unclear how citizens gain credits, since they are not paid directly for their work in credits. As there is no poverty, there is likely a highly egalitarian and fair method of distributing the wealth (output capacity) of the United Federation of Planets to its citizens, such as a basic income guarantee or social dividend.
Read more about this topic: Federation Credit
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