Edward Bellamy's Proto Credit Card

In 1888, American author Edward Bellamy published the utopian novel "Looking Backward," which described a future society where people accessed their money and credit through a personal device instead of cash. In his vision of the year 2000, every citizen carried a card-like instrument that drew on a central credit account managed by the state. They used this device to pay for goods and services, with transactions recorded against a national system rather than physical currency. The setup closely mirrors how modern credit cards and centralized electronic payment networks work today.

Previous Fact Next Fact