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Star Trek depicts a moneyless future where humanity has evolved beyond the need for possessions and the accumulation of wealth. Latinum serves as the primary currency in the Star Trek universe, is gold-plated and used by various species, including the Ferengi. Starfleet officers are driven by the pursuit of knowledge, discovery, and the betterment of humanity, and are compensated through means other than money.
In Star Trek’s utopian future society, humanity has evolved to the point where it has no use for money. This fact is most often made clear when Starfleet officers confront people from Earth’s past, such as when Captain James T. Kirk (William Shatner) candidly confesses to Dr. Gillian Taylor (name) in Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home that there will be no money in the future, or when 1990s financier Ralph Offenhouse (Peter Mark Richman) wakes up in the 24th century to find that his economic plans for the future have been dashed in Star Trek: The Next Generation, Season 1, Episode 26, “Neutral Zone.”
As Captain Jean-Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart) explains to Offenhaus in Star Trek: The Next Generation, “People are no longer obsessed with accumulating things. We’ve lost hunger, greed, the desire for possessions. We’ve left childhood behind.” The lack of currency in the Federation, especially among humans, is a great thought experiment that shows how advanced humanity has become in Star Trek, but not all civilizations in Star Trek are that advanced. In other words, some kind of money needs to exist in Star Trek for the economy of the future to function.
Related
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine depicts the origins of the Ferengi race, and Quark, Rom, Nog and Ishka continue to have a major impact on the Star Trek universe.
What is Latinum? Star Trek’s Favorite Money Explained
“Who came up with the idea of floating liquid latinum in a worthless lump of gold?”
The economy of the Star Trek future is powered by latinum, a rare liquid substance that cannot be replicated. Because latinum is liquid, it is wrapped in gold when used as physical currency. As such, latinum is often “gold-pressed” – it is the latinum, not the gold, that has value. Latinum is pressed into various quantities and into various denominations such as slips, strips, bars, bricks and braces. Strips were most commonly used for everyday shopping, bars were also used. Although latinum is liquid by nature, it can also be used to plate items to make them more luxurious or increase their value.
The value of gold-pressed latinum
100 sheets
1 strip
20 Strips
1 bar
The number of bars is unknown.
1 brick
Number of bricks unknown
1 Brace
Any discussion of Latinum would be incomplete without mentioning its iconic presence in the Star Trek universe: the Ferengi. The Ferengi of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, especially Quark (Armin Shimerman), provide the deepest insight into the value of Latinum, both from a material and social standpoint. Ferengi acquisition rules mention Latinum frequently, giving rise to idiomatic expressions equating Latinum with wealth of any kind. As a capitalist society in Star Trek, the Ferengi drive the economy of Star Trek, making Latinum a relatively universal currency in Star Trek. Latinum is used not only by the Ferengi, but also by the Cardassians, Klingons, and on worlds outside the Federation.
When it first appeared in Star Trek, latinum was measured in weight in kilograms, but by Star Trek: Deep Space Nine the standard unit was used more frequently.
Does Starfleet get paid in Star Trek?
Star Trek humans are not post-Scarcity, they are post-Avarice.
Starfleet officers are not necessarily financially compensated for their service, but they are “rewarded” in other ways. In Star Trek: First Contact, Lily Sloane (Alfre Woodard), living in 21st century Bozeman, Montana, is appalled that Captain Jean-Luc Picard is not compensated for his service to Starfleet. Picard is naturally unconcerned, pointing out that “the economy of the future is somewhat different… the acquisition of wealth is no longer the driving force in our lives. We work for the betterment of ourselves and of humanity as a whole.” For Picard and other Starfleet officers, the rewards are the joy of discovery, the service itself, and the recognition of achievement. The currency is social and academic, not monetary.
“It’s not my fault that your species abandoned currency-based economies in favor of a philosophy of self-enhancement.” – Nog (Aaron Eisenberg), Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Season 5, Episode 25, “In the Cards”
Fortunately, Starfleet officers are not simply out of luck when it comes to participating in the larger economies of non-Federation societies. Starfleet officers are given an allowance of latinum to spend while stationed wherever it may be needed. In Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, latinum is used to drink and gamble at Quark’s bar, for various foods and drinks, and to obtain certain necessities. In Star Trek: Voyager, far from Starfleet Headquarters, Captain Katharine Janeway (Kate Mulgrew) barters Federation technology with societies in the Delta Quadrant. In Star Trek, Earth’s money may be a thing of the past, but latinum supports humanity’s participation in galactic trade.