Editing Central bank (section)

===Background===
{{main|History of money}}

The use of [[money]] as a unit of account predates history. Government control of money is documented in the [[ancient Egypt]]ian economy (2750–2150 BCE).<ref>[http://www.nbbmuseum.be/en/2012/05/nederlands-geldgebruik-in-het-oude-egypte.htm ''Monetary Practices in Ancient Egypt''] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170425025052/http://www.nbbmuseum.be/en/2012/05/nederlands-geldgebruik-in-het-oude-egypte.htm |date=25 April 2017 }}. Money Museum National Bank of Belgium, 31 May 2012. Retrieved 10 February 2017.</ref> The Egyptians measured the value of goods with a central unit called ''shat''. Like many other currencies, the shat was linked to [[gold]]. The value of a shat in terms of goods was defined by government administrations. Other cultures in [[Asia Minor]] later materialized their currencies in the form of gold and silver [[coin]]s.<ref>Metcalf, William E. '' The Oxford Handbook of Greek and Roman Coinage'', Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2016, pp. 43–44</ref>

The mere issuance of [[paper currency]] or other types of financial money by a government is not the same as central banking. The difference is that government-issued financial money, as present e.g. in [[China]] during the [[Yuan dynasty]] in the form of paper currency, is typically not freely [[convertibility|convertible]] and thus of inferior quality, occasionally leading to [[hyperinflation]].

From the 12th century, a network of professional [[bank]]s emerged primarily in [[Southern Europe]] (including Southern France, with the [[Cahorsins]]).<ref>Collins, Christopher. ''The Oxford Encyclopedia of Economic History, Volume 3. Banking: Middle Ages and Early Modern Period'', Oxford University Press, 2012, pp. 221–225</ref> Banks could use book money to create [[Deposit (finance)|deposits]] for their customers. Thus, they had the possibility to issue, lend and transfer money autonomously without direct control from political authorities.