Gold standard - Financial definition
Financial acronyms
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Concise definition of the term gold standard
A gold standard is a monetary system in which a country's economic unit of account, or currency unit, is based on a fixed quantity of gold.
Comprehensive definition of the term gold standard
In a gold standard, the currency is freely convertible into gold and gold can be freely imported and exported.
The gold standard forms a basis for stable prices, as it links the money supply to the quantity of gold reserves in the country.
The gold standard was widely used in the 19th and early part of the 20th century. Most nations abandoned the gold standard as the basis of their monetary systems at some point in the 20th century, although many still hold substantial gold reserves.