<P> The Money in the Bank ladder match can feature anywhere from 5--10 participants, with the objective being to retrieve a briefcase that is suspended 20 feet above the ring . The match was originally only for male wrestlers until 2017 when women began to have their own ladder match . The briefcase contains a contract that guarantees a match for a world championship, and beginning in 2017, a women's championship . Originally, wrestlers had the option between the WWE Championship and the World Heavyweight Championship, regardless of the brand the wrestler belonged to . In 2006, ECW's world title, the ECW Championship, became a third option until 2010 as in February that year, the ECW brand along with the title was deactivated . Beginning with the inaugural Money in the Bank pay - per - view in 2010, the event featured two ladder matches, one for the Raw brand and one for SmackDown; Raw's ladder match featured a contract for a WWE Championship match while SmackDown's contract was for a World Heavyweight Championship match . Although the brand extension ended after the 2011 event, a ladder match dedicated to each championship continued through the 2013 event . In December 2013, the titles were unified into the WWE World Heavyweight Championship . The next three years' events featured a sole ladder match with a contract guaranteeing a match for the unified title . The brand extension returned after the 2016 event . The WWE World Heavyweight Championship was reverted to WWE Championship and made exclusive to SmackDown while Raw established the WWE Universal Championship as their top title . Despite this, the 2017 event was made a SmackDown exclusive pay - per - view and the contract was for its world title . Also at the 2017 event, the first - ever Women's Money in the Bank ladder match occurred with its contract for a SmackDown Women's Championship match . </P> <P> The primary gimmick of the Money in the Bank briefcase is that it can be cashed in at the holder's sole discretion, at literally any time on any WWE programming, unless the contract is brand specific . This enables the holder to take advantage of a moment's weakness in the champion, even if the champion had just finished a title defense for the night . This strategic use of the briefcase was popularized by Edge, the first Money in the Bank holder, who cashed it in at New Years Revolution in January 2006, immediately after defending champion John Cena had finished a grueling Elimination Chamber match against five other wrestlers . Because Cena was exhausted and barely able to defend himself, Edge made quick work of the champion, thus setting a powerful precedent for all Money in the Bank holders to come . </P> <P> The contract is valid for one year and the briefcase holder--dubbed "Mr. Money in the Bank" (or in the case of women, "Ms. Money in the Bank")--can cash in the contract at the date, place, and time of their choosing . The briefcase may also be defended in matches, similar to how championships are defended . All of the briefcase holders have successfully defended and cashed in the contract except Mr. Kennedy . John Cena, Damien Sandow, and Baron Corbin are the only Money in the Bank contract holders to cash in and fail to gain a championship . To date, Cena has had the contract cashed in against him the most (three times) as Edge, Rob Van Dam, and Damien Sandow have all cashed in against him . Cena was also involved in all instances where the championship failed to change hands after cashing in the contract, once as the challenger (which he won by DQ against CM Punk) and the second time as champion (defeating Sandow clean), and lastly as a distraction causing Corbin to lose to champion Jinder Mahal . Edge, Daniel Bryan, and Seth Rollins are the only Money in the Bank contract holders to be given a title shot for a championship without having cashed in the contract for the title shot (Edge won a championship tournament in 2005 on Raw to earn him a title match against Batista, Bryan faced then - World Heavyweight Champion Mark Henry in a steel cage match on a live Christmas episode of SmackDown in 2011, and Rollins received a title shot in a triple threat match, also involving Cena and champion Brock Lesnar, at the 2015 Royal Rumble). </P> <P> In WWE storyline, the concept for the Money in the Bank match was introduced in March 2005 by Chris Jericho . Jericho then pitched the idea to Raw general manager Eric Bischoff, who liked it and promptly began to book the match for WrestleMania 21 . Edge won the inaugural match and held the contract until New Year's Revolution in January 2006 . There, he cashed in his Money in the Bank contract against WWE Champion John Cena, who had just successfully defended the title in an Elimination Chamber match . Edge defeated Cena to become WWE Champion . </P>

Who failed to cash in money inthe bank