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The Pegasus Exchange project is creating a local complementary currency which will enable individuals, not-for-profit organisations and businesses to be more involved and have greater participation in the economy. The currency is set up as a membership organisation with a focus on small business activity and to support the not-for-profit community organisations in Canterbury's urban and rural areas. It will enable enhanced economic activity through increased trade, by providing an interest-free means of exchange.
To establish, operate and maintain a local complementary currency exchange, and to provide economic literacy education.
1. To set up the Pegasus Exchange and attract business, not-for-profit and individual/household users.
2. To achieve 100 members by June 2010 and expand the scheme to a target of 50'000 registered member accounts in throughout Canterbury.
A local currency needs to be sustainable, accessible and affordable for its users. We aim to establish a currency that is able to mediate trading in both small and large amounts. The currency will respond to the needs of all sectors of society - business, households, voluntary and not-for-profit sector, tangata whenua as well as government.
The concept is built on the lessons learnt from previous and operating LETS, especially the experience of PLEBS/Community Dollars in Christchurch (20 years of experience), as well as on the experiences of many other complementary currency systems in New Zealand and worldwide.
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The currency is designed as a 'mutual credit system', where a community of members extends 'credit' to each other.
The currency is created in the form of account balances, recorded by an Internet-based accounting system (Community Exchange System, CES, http://www.community-exchange.org/). Member account balances constitute the sum of all trades and exchanges registered on the account until now.
To facilitate trade and exchange, and to enable non-members without accounts to use the currency, exchange vouchers are issued into circulation.
The unit standard of value of the currency shall be One Hour, divided into 10 Pegx (Px).
To start off with, one Hour is initially defined as NZD 20 (1 Px = NZD 2.00). From then on, the NZD value of the hour will be indexed with the CPI, with the CPI at the end of 2009 = 100. The exchange rate is then adjusted quarterly, according to the CPI, or more often if necessary in times of high inflation.
Prices are quoted in either Hours or Px. There is no obligation or expectation that one hour of work/labour is priced/valued as 1 Hour/10 Px. (This is not a Time Bank!)
There are two membership categories: a) Basic Membership, open to all, and b) a Trading Membership, which will be awarded to entrepreneurs, businesses and organisations.
To qualify for the Trading membership, an account holder will have to complete all three modules of the introductory education programme and submit a trading plan to the exchange (exceptions may apply).
The Pegasus Exchange will be run by Pegasus Exchange Ltd, a not-for-profit company.
For more information, and if you are interested to join, please contact the Pegasus Exchange on 366 9978 and ask to speak to Dominic Collins, or send him an email; info@pegx.co.nz
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