Spot Forex: History of Forex
Foreign Exchange Timeline
Starting with 1944, click the arrows above to scroll through the timeline of currency trading.
The earliest known currency used in commercial transactions appeared in Egypt and Mesopotamia around 3,000 B.C. The exchange of currencies began in the Middle East and spread throughout the known world over the next few centuries. During the Middle Ages, multiple coin currencies were converted into a single currency consisting of paper bills. Currency exchange prospered with little change until the 20th century.
Until World War I, trading currencies was extremely stable and involved very little risk. After the war, forex markets changed dramatically, becoming highly volatile with speculative activity increasing by a factor of 10. The increase in risk led to a generally unfavourable view of forex by society and most institutions. The Great Depression and other events of that era, including the removal of the gold standard in 1931, further perpetuated a lull in activity, similar to that experienced during the Middle Ages. From 1931-1973, global economies saw great changes to forex, but these changes did nothing to increase the pace of activity. It wasn't until the 1990s that the currency market again began spiking with activity and the rest, as they say, is history.
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