The Willow Trade Model is a concept for an alternative financial currency system.

(At some point I called it “Willow Trade,” and the name has stuck in my mind, and I can’t think of anything better to call it.)

You can think of Willow Trade as an alternative currency alongside currencies like the U.S. dollar or Bitcoin, but Willow Trade has its own properties and characteristics.

You can also think of it as an alternative financial/social structure, like capitalism, socialism, communism, or UBI.

This is just a framework, and like the many flavors of cryptocurrencies, there could be many different nuances in its implementation.

Here is the basic outline for this conceptual currency.

(At first it may seem silly or pointless, but hopefully, if you stick with it, there are a few twists and turns that might make it at least an engaging thought experiment.)

Willow Trade is a centralized, managed fiat currency. A centralized online banking service is created. This bank would be open to anyone to create an account, although they would need to prove that they are a living, breathing human person and that they do not already have an account.

When a person enrolls in Willow Trade, they would automatically be issued 10,000 WT.

Mobile apps and QR codes would be developed so that people could transact with one another, buying and selling goods and services seamlessly and smoothly, without transaction fees.

The first twist is that all Willow Trade currency has an annual denomination. So when you are issued your initial balance, if it’s the year 2026, your account would have 10,000 WT-2026. Anytime you make a transaction, you have to include the amount and vintage. So maybe I want to buy apples from you, and you charge me 3 WT-2026. Your online account balance would be broken out by vintage, showing, for example, that you have 3,000 WT-2026 and 12,000 WT-2027.

The second twist is that at the end of the year, all of the current year’s currency freezes and becomes unusable. So it would seem that toward the end of the year, everyone would want to spend or get rid of any of their remaining current-year WT before it expires.

Also, at some point prior to the end of the year, everyone would be issued 10,000 WT for the upcoming year.

The third and final twist is that whoever ends up with the most expired WT at the end of each year WINS.

There would be a leaderboard or scoreboard that memorializes forever who won that year’s Willow Trade, by how much, and where everyone ranked.

So when approaching the end of the year, on one hand you want to get rid of your current WT since it will freeze, but on the other hand you want to get as much as possible so you can win.

So that’s the basic framework:

• Everyone is issued an initial amount each year “for free.”

• It’s annualized and freezes up at the end of each year.

• Whoever has the most at the end of the year wins.

So let’s set sanity aside for a moment and dare to dream about how this could play out if people really, truly, and enthusiastically engaged with the concept.

Cue the John Lennon song “Imagine”—just imagine. For a moment, have the courage to dream big.

Imagine that the world’s richest, greediest people woke up tomorrow thinking, “My #1 goal is to win Willow Trade.” Or imagine that everyone woke up thinking, “How can I get as much Willow Trade as possible?”

Capitalism’s inherent market forces would light up. Willow Trade would gain real market value, and demand would be created for the currency. You could sell your WT for other forms of currency. Or, if you had needs or wants and some WT in your account, there would be a host of people ready to serve you and meet your market needs.

Because if someone truly wanted to win Willow Trade, they would need to figure out how to get everyone else to voluntarily give them their WT.

Imagine that winning Willow Trade, or being on the leaderboard, became the biggest, most celebrated, most coveted event of the year—greater than any sporting event or award show, or all of them combined.

The strange result is that even the most selfish desire to win could become a tremendous force for serving other people.

People could live to serve while still getting to compete, accumulate, and win.

The system inherently inflates or deflates based on the number of people engaged in the system and their enthusiasm for it.

If this came to life, the system would likely stratify into two segments:

• “Winners,” who create value for others and end up on the scoreboard at the end of the year.

• “Zeros,” who create little or no market value for others, live off the system, and don’t appear on the scoreboard.

Ideally, this should have a deep open-source ethos and be as simple, trustworthy, and verifiable as possible. There should be no transaction fees, and things should be as frictionless and smooth as possible.

Every year the currency resets, but everyone starts again with the same new annual allotment.

If you become disabled or otherwise unable to take care of yourself, you still receive your Willow Trade allocation and remain a participant in the system.

It capitalizes identity. It capitalizes applause.

The “richest” people may no longer have the nicest houses or the biggest yachts, but they would have the greatest and loudest applause, and probably the most fun along the way.

Serving people—your fellow humanity—not just to “get rich,” but to “have fun” or “to win,” seems to me like it could be a more compelling, relaxing, authentic, and enjoyable way to live and go about life.

It’s less of a fear-based or greed-based economy and more of an abundance-based or connection-based economy.

If you can figure out better ways to serve people, meet their needs, and execute, you can climb the Willow Trade leaderboard. You can be a winner by serving people. And the system meets your needs too—although spending your WT causes you to descend the leaderboard.

And everyone gets to play again next year.

So that is the Willow Trade concept.

We could go on thinking about the nuances and dynamics and the theoretical social implications, but for now I’d like to keep this simple.

Want to have some fun!? Want to be a Willow Trade winner?

Let’s play!