Until around 1350, lending money with interest was prohibited in Christianity, Islam, and the Jewish community, due to the problems caused by the constant human tendency to borrow more money than one could repay. As a result, money was based on physical resources such as gold and silver. Then, in Italy (particularly Venice and Florence under the Medici family), around 1350, rules for lending new types of money were established: bonds, deposits, obligations, and stocks.
