A brief history of currencies

Circa 10000 BC: Metal currency that didn't physically exist is used in Mesopotamia (today's Syria and Iraq).

C 3000 BC: Earliest physical currency in the form of shells is used in China as major instruments for payments.

1500 BC: First copper coins appear in China.

995 AD: China's first paper money is used in private transactions by merchants in Chengdu, Sichuan province. The paper money is called Jiao Zi.

Dec 1, 1948: China issues the first set of renminbi, establishes the People's Bank of China, the central bank.

1983: American cryptographer David Chaum conceives anonymous cryptographic electronic money called ecash.

1995: Chaum implements ecash through Digicash, an early form of cryptographic electronic payments.

2008: Bitcoin, a form of electronic cash, appears in cyberspace.

2009: The first bitcoin transaction occurs when the mysterious Nakamoto sends software writer Hal Finney 10 bitcoin on 12 Jan.

2010: First known commercial deal using bitcoin takes place; two Papa John's pizzas are bought for 10,000 bitcoin.

2014: PBOC starts research on digital fiat currency.

2016: PBOC launches a digital currency research division.

2018: Number of cryptocurrencies available over the internet exceeds 1,600 on Aug 19.

Sources: PBOC and Chinese money history