THE DIFFERENTIAL ECONOMY
Why Liana Banyan’s Currency Works Differently
By Jonathan Jones, Founding Manager, Liana Banyan Corporation December 1, 2025
The Problem: Currencies as Gatekeepers
Here’s what nobody talks about when they build a global platform:
Bob lives in Greece. His currency is weak — worth about 80 cents on the dollar. Mary lives in Switzerland. Her currency is strong — worth about $1.40 on the dollar.
On every other platform in existence, Bob pays more (relative to his economic reality) and Mary pays less (relative to hers). The platform pretends this is fair because “everyone pays the same price in USD.”
It’s not fair. It’s economic colonialism with a credit card form.
The Insight: Differentials Allow Different Speeds
In a car, a differential is the mechanism that allows the left and right wheels to turn at different speeds while the axle stays stable. Without it, you couldn’t turn corners — the wheels would fight each other.
Economies are wheels turning at different speeds. The dollar, the euro, the pound, the dinar — all spinning at different rates, constantly changing.
Every global platform I’ve seen treats this as someone else’s problem. “Just convert to USD.” But that conversion IS the problem. It means Bob’s labor is worth less than Mary’s, not because he’s less skilled, but because he was born in the wrong economy.
I refused to accept that.
The Three Gears: Credits, Marks, Joules
Liana Banyan uses a three-currency system that functions like a differential. Each currency serves a specific purpose, and together they absorb external economic fluctuations while maintaining internal stability.
GEAR 1: CREDITS — The Axle
Credits are the primary platform currency. As of December 1, 2025, we set the initial anchor:
1 Credit = $1 USD
But here’s what’s different: this is just a starting point. Credits aren’t pegged to the dollar. They float based on our internal economy — the aggregate of all transactions, all work in progress, all value created on the platform.
The dollar is our training wheels. We’ll take them off when we’re ready.
Credits are:
- The stable internal transaction currency
- Fractional (0.01 Credit = $0.01)
- Non-transferable for cash between users
- Only sold by Liana Banyan, never by members
GEAR 2: MARKS — The Compensator
Marks are the micro-currency. They handle tips, small rewards, and — critically — effort debt.
When Bob from Greece wants to buy 1 Credit but his currency is only worth 0.8 of the baseline, he doesn’t get turned away. He gets 1 Credit, and he owes 0.2 Marks.
That 0.2 Marks isn’t debt in the punitive sense. It’s equity-in-waiting.
Bob clears his Marks by participating: working, buying, voting, contributing. The platform activity itself pays off the difference. Or, if Bob can’t or won’t clear it, that Marks debt becomes redeemable equity that other members can purchase.
This is the birthright mechanic.
You can sell your birthright. Esau did. But I wouldn’t. And unlike Esau, you have ample time to redeem it before the transfer is permanent.
GEAR 3: JOULES — The Forever Stamp
Joules are stored potential energy. They capture surplus value from strong economies.
When Mary from Switzerland wants to buy 1 Credit but her currency is worth 1.4 of the baseline, she gets 1 Credit plus 0.4 Joules.
Those Joules work like the Post Office’s Forever Stamps. She bought them at today’s rate. She can use them forever at that rate, even if Credits appreciate.
Example:
- Today: Mary pays $1.40 → Gets 1 Credit + 0.4 Joules
- One year later: 1 Credit now equals $1.50
- Mary’s 0.4 Joules still convert to 0.4 Credits
- She got in at the old rate, protected from appreciation
Joules are the capacitor in our system. They store energy from strong economies, available for deployment later.
The Differential in Action
MARY (Strong Economy) BOB (Weak Economy)
Currency worth 1.4 Currency worth 0.8
│ │
Pays $1.00 Pays $1.00
│ │
▼ ▼
┌─────────────┐ ┌─────────────┐
│ 1.0 Credit │ │ 1.0 Credit │
│+0.4 Joules │ │+0.2 Marks │
│ (stored) │ │ (effort) │
└─────────────┘ └─────────────┘
│ │
└──────────► PLATFORM ◄────────────────┘
(stable axle)
Both Bob and Mary get exactly 1 Credit worth of value. The differential absorbs the difference.
Bob works off his Marks through participation. Mary banks her Joules for later. The platform stays stable regardless of what the forex markets do tomorrow.
The Inexhaustible Resource
Every currency needs backing. Gold. Oil. “The full faith and credit of the United States government.”
Ours is backed by human effort and ingenuity.
Not hours — we don’t pay hourly. We pay by the job, by the deliverable, by the value created. The aggregate of all platform transactions and work-in-progress IS the backing.
How do you price something? The same way everyone does: market discovery. What’s a burger worth? Whatever McDonald’s charges — they’ve spent billions figuring it out. What’s a video production worth? Whatever the market will pay, plus our 20% margin.
Cost + 20%. That’s our formula. The market sets the cost. We add 20%. That’s the Credit price.
Why This Matters
It’s Fair
Everyone gets 1 Credit worth of value, regardless of which economy they were born into. The differential handles the rest.
It Rewards Contribution Over Capital
Bob can’t buy his way in cheap. He contributes to clear his Marks. The platform values participation, not just payment.
It Creates Resilience
Our internal economy becomes more stable than any single external currency. We’re not blown about by forex winds.
It Prevents Gaming
Credits can’t be resold between users. No arbitrage. No speculation. Spend it on the platform or don’t — those are your options.
The Bigger Vision
If this works — and I believe it will — we’ve solved something bigger than platform economics.
World hunger isn’t a production problem. We grow enough food. It’s an access problem. Economics, logistics, politics — all creating barriers between food and mouths.
If a platform can equalize economic access — if Bob in Greece can participate equally with Mary in Switzerland — then those barriers start to dissolve. Not through charity. Through mechanical fairness.
A differential doesn’t care which wheel is spinning faster. It just keeps the car moving forward.
That’s what we’re building.
The Beginning
Every system needs an arbitrary starting point. Ours is today.
December 1, 2025:
- 1 Credit = $1 USD
- Fractional Credits allowed
- Marks clear through participation
- Joules lock in value at purchase
From here, the internal economy takes over. Prices find equilibrium through Cost+20% and market discovery. Credits float based on aggregate platform activity. The dollar becomes a reference point, then a memory.
We’re not building a currency. We’re building a differential.
And differentials let you turn corners.
Jonathan Jones is the Founding Manager of Liana Banyan Corporation.
Learn more at the2ndSecond.com