<P> Fiat money is a currency without intrinsic value that has been established as money, often by government regulation . Fiat money does not have use value, and has value only because a government maintains its value, or because parties engaging in exchange agree on its value . It was introduced as an alternative to commodity money and representative money . Commodity money is created from a good, often a precious metal such as gold or silver, which has uses other than as a medium of exchange (such a good is called a commodity). Representative money is similar to fiat money, but it represents a claim on a commodity (which can be redeemed to a greater or lesser extent). </P> <P> The first use of fiat money was recorded in China around 1000 AD . Since then, it has been used by various countries, usually concurrently with commodity currencies . Fiat money started to dominate in the 20th century . Since the decoupling of the US dollar to gold by Richard Nixon in 1971, a system of national fiat currencies has been used globally, with freely floating exchange rates between the national currencies . </P>

What type of money has value based on intrinsic worth