Are invented or local currencies money?

WHAT IS MONEY
Are invented or local currencies money? Why or why not?

What is money 1
One of the most significant systems of a social system is money. Apart from the
nationally recognised currencies, there are certain local or the invented currencies as
well that are prevalent in a region or a social system. The following work is aimed at
presenting the argument that the invented and the local currency is regarded as money
as the same fulfils the various characters of the money. The work would be facilitated
by the various literary works that would support the above stated argument.
One of the chief functions of money is to establish a medium of exchange (Anon). A
local currency is referred to as a currency that is for the use within a region or a country
only. Thus, a local currency is the currency in which most of the transactions are settled
within a region or a country. Some of the examples of the local currency that were
created over time were the German WARA, the Swiss WIR Franc, the American
Ithaca’s Hours, the Austrian Worgl and others. From the initial use of the barter system
as a medium of exchanging to the invention of the coins, paper bills and now the digital
currency, the human race has come a long way in terms of the development of medium
of exchange on the lines of sustainable and economic development of a country or
region. It is vital to note that the local currency implementation can be facilitated with
different value systems and motivations that would aid in addressing the various issues
in the society such as the divisions of labour, imbalances in terms of wages and others,
and thus can aid in the sustainable development. Hence, as per the first characteristics
the local currency can be regarded as money.

What is money 2
Apart from the above discussed, the yet another function and the characteristics of
money is that it was introduced with an aim to eliminate the need of the double
coincidence of wants as existed in the case of the barter system. This leads to one more
vital characteristics of the money that is facilitating the trade of the commodities. The
yet another key characteristics of money is that the nature of money in itself is such that
it is independent of any transactions in which the same is used and has an identity of its
own irrespective of the nature of the transactions (Thomas 3). It is significant to note
that the introduction of the local currency is not done with an aim to replace the
conventional money or present a challenge to it, rather the introduction is done with an
aim to complement the same.
The need of the currency in the refugee camp had led to the development of a
commodity currency namely the POW Cigarettes, which had begun to be circulated as
money in order to ensure the even distribution of the goods within the camp and
eliminate the double coincidence of wants (Bradford 189). One of the major
characteristics of money that is incidental to the conduct of the business sis also the
settlement of the accounts and the payment of the taxes. The transactions conducted in
terms of the commodities like that of the cigarettes are inconvenient in terms of taxing
the value addition achieved in the trade. Hence, it would be right to state that the POW
Cigarettes in the form of a local currency did qualify certain characteristics of money,
but not all of them. However, the same are not as convenient as the actual paper bills
because not everyone consumes cigarettes. Hence, it would be right to conclude that