The concept of CDs dates back to the 1600s in Europe

CDs come with risks, such as penalties for early withdrawal and inflation

CDs are generally considered fairly safe investment options. A CD bought via a federally insured bank is insured up to $250K.

The history of bankruptcy in the US dates back to the signing of the Constitution

In 1787, this founding document gave Congress the right to establish nationwide bankruptcy laws. Legislators took advantage of that power in 1800 when they passed the Bankruptcy Act of 1800, the first comprehensive bankruptcy law at the federal level.

The bond market dates back to the 1100s in Venice

In the early 1800s, bonds were used to fund US railroads and canals in Great Britain. “Liberty Bonds” were sold during both World Wars in the 20th century. Learning about the early and modern history of bonds can offer a glimpse into how the modern bond market came to be.

London bankers created the first clearinghouse to process checks in 1770

Until that time, each banker was required to bring that day's checks to every other bank for settlement. Perhaps understandably, the first place bankers opted to gather to clear and settle checks was a tavern known as the Five Bells. The innovation gave rise to what would become clearinghouses, key institutions that facilitate payments.

Congress mandated that the Fed streamline check payments

When it was first created in the 1910s, the Federal Reserve System became a crucial link between the nation's regional banks. The increasing number of checks used by the thousands of banks across the nation required a central operator, and the Fed was uniquely positioned to help. Learn more about the role the Fed played in the history of checks.

Although no longer the dominant format, CDs are increasingly popular with younger people

The compact disc now only accounts for about 3% of all music industry revenue, but those who still purchase CDs are, generally, much younger than most would expect. A 2023 YouGov poll found that 53% of Americans were willing to pay for music on CDs. When broken down by generation, those under 45-years-old were more likely to express interest in CDs and vinyl.

Throughout most of the 1800s, US currency was backed by silver and gold

In post-Civil War America, the government moved to use only the gold standard. This was how US currency was backed for decades in the US. You can read a comprehensive explainer on the gold standard and its history in the US to learn more.

From bartering to banking, temples to electronic transactions, here’s banking has evolved significantly since ancient times

A few historical facts about banking (like that one day, not long ago, certificates of deposit were physical pieces of paper) may not surprise you. But did you know that the church was the original lender? And that Julius Caesar himself invented foreclosure?

Central banking in the US has had a fraught political history

That history includes its doomed early efforts in the First and Second National Banks, as well as its failure to address the worst financial period in US history, the Great Depression.

Average three-month CD rates reached a historical high of 18.65% in December 1980

Comparatively, average three-month CD rates reached a low of 0.09% in June 2021 amid the economic turmoil of the COVID-19 pandemic. When inflation began to rise in 2022, the Fed began initiating rate hikes to incentivize saving.

The history of credit cards begins with the 'Fresno Drop.'

On a 1958 morning in Fresno, California, about 60,000 people woke up to find a strange rectangular piece of plastic on their doorstep without explanation. Those chosen for the "Fresno Drop" didn't know it yet, but Bank of America was behind the credit card delivery stunt.

Credit reporting started as a service for businesses rather than consumers

In the 1700s US economy, consumer credit reporting wasn't necessary. A loan to a farmer for agricultural supplies, for instance, would inevitably help them purchase both personal and business items.

Meet Alphonse Desjardins, a credit union pioneer

The first credit union opened in Germany in 1864, but the bank alternative didn’t reach North America until 1901. That’s when Canadian journalist Alphonse Desjardins introduced the concept to his hometown with a starter 10-cent deposit. Desjardins helped launch the first US credit union just eight years later. This engaging timeline highlights Desjardins, his contributions to credit unions, and how the institutions have evolved over the last 100-plus years. Scroll through the timeline here.

The concept of life insurance likely originated in ancient Rome around the year 100 BCE

However, life insurance policies didn’t reach the Americas until 1759, when life insurance started being used to protect the families of Protestant ministers when said ministers died. This timeline of life insurance’s early history—and how it has evolved since then—provides more details.

Benjamin Franklin founded America's first lending library in 1731

Franklin convinced members of his intellectual club to pool resources and purchase books none could afford individually. The Library Company of Philadelphia was founded with 50 shareholders, each contributing 40 shillings, and served as the unofficial, de facto Library of Congress from the Revolutionary War until 1800.

The first known mention of the term 'country' to describe music was in 1736

The November 26, 1736 issue of the Virginia Gazette described a fiddling contest for "country" musicians. While the musical style would go by many names over the next two centuries, "country" was the one that eventually stuck.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average was created in the aftermath of a financial crisis

Charles Dow introduced the index in 1896, following the Panic of 1893—a severe economic downturn. The DJIA offered investors a straightforward tool to track recovery and gauge the health of America’s emerging industrial economy.

Pre-coin currencies like shells were subject to counterfeiting

While it is difficult to pinpoint the very earliest form of money that was used, a type of shell called cowrie shells were used as currency as far back as 3300–2000 BCE. These shells were imitated using ivory, bone, clam shells and more.

The idea for the Federal Reserve was conceived in secret in 1910—with bankers donning duck hunt gear for disguise while traveling to a remote country club on Georgia's Jekyll Island

The first compact cassette tape was introduced at IFA 1963

At IFA 1963 in Berlin, Philips introduced the compact cassette tape. This new standardized audio format replaced bulky reel-to-reel tape and would go on to dominate home recording and music listening for decades.

World War II soldiers received specially-made vinyl records

"V-Discs" were vinyl records featuring popular folk, classical, and jazz songs. This was one of the first widespread uses of vinyl, rather than shellac, records.

Before electric lights, Christmas trees were lit with real candles

The practice of lighting Christmas trees with electricity didn’t begin until the late 1800s. Before that, families used wax candles on branches—a dangerous tradition that originated in 16th-century Germany.

The first US ETF was launched in 1993

Exchange-traded funds are relatively new inventions, and they've grown significantly in popularity during their few decades of existence. They were first created as an alternative to mutual funds. A colorful visualization depicts the entire history of ETFs.

The Glass-Steagall Act separated commercial banks in the US from investment banks

In 1933, the Glass-Steagall Act legally separated commercial banks in the US from investment banks. However, by 1999, the act was repealed—meaning that today’s investment banks are no longer required to be separate from the type of bank where you deposit your paycheck.

US consumers collectively owe more than $1T to credit card companies—almost as much as they owe in auto loans.

Read about the history of gift cards

The first retailer to sell gift cards was Neiman Marcus, but Blockbuster popularized them by selling them via in-store displays in 1994. Starbucks then started selling gift cards that could be reloaded in 2001.

See a census of college students dating back to 1850

The first mention of college students in census surveys dates back to 1850, when officials realized a sizeable proportion of Americans lived on campus. More modern data from the National Center for Education Statistics capture the growth in the student population, with a breakdown beginning at the end of World War II with gender and type-of-institution data.

While the first exchange-traded fund (a 'basket' of different assets that can be bought and sold on a stock exchange) in the US only launched in 1993, the global ETF market has grown to more than $10T in the short time since.

A century of Billboard issues documenting the evolution of popular music.

Some coin denominations have ridges etched on their sides, partly to prevent counterfeiting, in a practice called 'reeding.'

Hear about the 250-year history of the United States Postal Service, complete with some of its strangest deliveries, important innovations, and the figures that made it an American institution.

The original copy of the Declaration of Independence is not a pristine document, and even features a smudged anonymous handprint in the bottom left corner.

The US dollar is the most widely circulated currency in the world, and is involved in nearly 90% of global transactions

Jimmy Carter signed a 1978 bill that legalized home brewing, a move credited with kick-starting the craft beer industry.

70 years ago today, city officials in Santa Cruz, California, banned rock 'n' roll to protect its youth from corruption after witnessing a 'provocative' concert the night before.

English mathematician Ada Lovelace wrote the first computer algorithm a century before computers existed and hypothesized that computing devices would one day be able to compose music—foreseeing the generative AI systems of today.

Sony set the standard for cylinder-shaped batteries when it repurposed manufacturing equipment used to make rolls of magnetic recording tape.

Sears sold DIY house kits starting at $600 in its famous catalog from 1908 through the 1940s, resulting in roughly 10,000 'Sears and Roebuck houses' being built.

The US Constitution is widely regarded as the longest-standing written national constitution still in force—see how it has influenced rights worldwide.

The concept of phantom limbs, the perception that amputated limbs are still present, dates back to a French military surgeon in the 16th century.

The American Society of Civil Engineers' infrastructure report card gave the US a C in 2025, its highest grade since the project launched in 1998.

Learn more about the history of fireworks, which dates back to an accidental invention during an alchemist's quest for information about immortality.

After the Boston Tea Party, colonists switched to coffee, which became the main morning drink for revolutionaries.

The word 'jazz' evolved from 'jasm,' 19th-century American slang for 'energy'

The Beatles' US label rejected the band's first two singles, 'Please Please Me' and 'From Me to You,' with one executive calling the band 'dead in the water.'

For centuries, it was common to sleep in two shifts: a few hours at the beginning of the night, and a longer period beginning around midnight

The American cockroach is actually from Africa, an apparent hitchhiker aboard ships carrying enslaved people, with evidence suggesting the bug may have arrived in the New World as early as the 1600s.

Long before Major League Baseball began allowing instant replay for balls and strikes, an umpire reluctantly used the technology to determine whether a hit was a home run, a move that inadvertently ushered in a new era for the sport.

Domino's Pizza's 30-minute delivery guarantee was responsible for the chain's 1980s surge, but it was discontinued after the company was found liable for delivery driver accidents.

The Brothers Grimm were lawyers before they were storytellers, and became interested in fairy tales as they began investigating how rules and customs had been passed down through cultures.