The Clunies-Ross family ruled the Cocos (Keeling) Islands as a private fiefdom for over a century, and their plastic token coinage was the only currency permitted on the islands — Malay workers on the copra plantations were paid in these tokens, redeemable exclusively at the family-owned store. It was a closed economic loop by design. Australian authorities finally forced the abolition of the system in 1978, when the tokens were bought back at a fixed rate.
The Clunies-Ross family ruled the Cocos (Keeling) Islands as a private fiefdom for over a century, and their plastic token coinage was the only currency permitted on the islands — Malay workers on the copra plantations were paid in these tokens, redeemable exclusively at the family-owned store. It was a closed economic loop by design. Australian authorities finally forced the abolition of the system in 1978, when the tokens were bought back at a fixed rate.