Voted Gold since chips was not an option.
How about different types of chips for different settlements?

Most casino chips are extremely difficult to duplicate (for obvious reasons).

Technically speaking, specie currency made of rare metals doesn't have to be "backed"; their value is inherent due to rarity. That's why debasing is bad. It has the same effect as inflation.

Currency based on commodities is an interesting concept, especially in the post-apocalyptic world, but commodity prices spike and drop based on availability and "practical" value. E.g. the value of copper has changed dramatically over time based on availability and its use in various products. Gold typically does not fluctuate much because a) it is still pretty darn rare and B) it is not used extensively in volume outside of ornamentation (e.g. jewelry, gold-plated AK-47s, etc.).

Most countries moved away from specie-backed currencies in the early 20th centuries because fiat currencies allowed them more flexibility to deal with financial problems in their economies.

J.E. is telling us something somewhere in those big words! I know it!

First choice would be poker chips. Second would be caps. Gold just sounds too rare too be used as currency.

I thought they made them in factories, localy. And we've already repaired at least 2 factories in FO3.

Still, chips would be the obvious, and very fitting currency. We're all debating over realism here, and Fallout has never been a game about realism.
I would easily trade in realism for atmosphere, and chips as currency sets a whole lot better atmosphere than gold or amunition.

I think caps would fit the game even better then ever. My opinions are sometime of the oddest moments ever of what there should be gold or caps, but im just gonna say caps because in fallout 3 that worked best for me.

It sould be gold NCR and the rest of the west were using gold coins at the time of fallout 2, so why would New Vegas not? I can see a mix of both coins and caps. Over all Gold should be used.

Yes. Pretty much all casino chips are made in a very small number of factories with extremely high security. They really don't fool around with that stuff.

Any form of backed-currency in any society has to prevent unregulated duplication or the currency loses its value.

No secret messages implied. I'm just sharing what I've learned in researching this topic. Currency is very interesting.

i voted caps as theres no option for chips.I think gold would be too hard to find in the wasteland and not enough of it.

Thats why when your in vegas, you don't put a lovely card in your left hand or right hand. Also they have so many cameras in vegas these days it's like they have one watching you everywhere you go. Privacy has been taken away in alot of place. To agree more i only gambled once in my life and i tell you i learned my lesson. Stay away from casinos they get your money good.

there were gold mines (Redding)in Fallout 2. Las Vegas would have huge vaults full of gold! they have them today. Gold would be all over the wasteland. Any bank or casino would have been full of gold at the time. California has alot of gold mines.

I think the currency should be issues of Cat's Paw magazines.

ah i not played fallout 2 yet been meaning to tho

really porm as a currency?

Gold is too scarce and wouldn't be around Vegas, well maybe a bit but you won't get your hands on it. I like caps because there's a quantity of them and they represent something valuable, caps are fine.

Have you played fallout 2? They were using gold coins as I said before "there were gold mines (Redding)in Fallout 2. Las Vegas would have huge vaults full of gold! they have them today. Gold would be all over the wasteland. Any bank or casino would have been full of gold at the time. California has alot of gold mines." Having the people make their own coins is a big sign of improvement for a civilization. In fallout 2 The west coast NCR and Vault City as well as others were well on their way to rebuilding. If Van Buren was made we would have seen then have trains. Going back to caps is a big step back.

I dont want to see gold in the game i want to see caps true that gold was the currency in FO2 but i like caps.

I checked The Vault and they only had gold nuggets which didn't act as currency and instead you were paid for it. So there is no gold coins. http://fallout.wikia.com/wiki/Gold_Nugget

Edit: I've been checking and i think there is gold coins but it doesn't exist on The Vault so...But also when I google them I hardly get results so yeah, i think only gold nuggets exist.

If there are caps they should only be used by raiders or other new comers to the west. Have places were you can trade Caps in for NCR coins like a currency exchange.

I don't get why people want to take so much away from fallout 1 and 2. They are what Fallout is based on we can't just forget them and start over with the new 3. It is a great game but we can't just discard the past games because they are "Old" and you like caps more.

ITS GARY ="I checked The Vault and they only had gold nuggets which didn't act as currency and instead you were paid for it. So there is no gold coins" Gold Nuggets become coins! you have to make them into coins! they sold their nuggets and paid their works in local paper money script. The nuggets then went to Vault city and NCR to be made into COINS. Then the workers could take the Script and turn it in for coins later.

Oh sorry, well I guess gold coins could be considered but still I'd rather have caps. But then it's on the West Coast so i guess I'll consider gold coins...

Cold coins or NCR money would make sense. NCR is the largest power in west coast, being one of the more advanced areas, both in terms of military strenght and economy. So anyone doing trading with them would probably use NCR currency, in some amount atleast.

In New Vegas it's been 30 years since the events of Fallout 2, who knows if NCR is still as mighty as it was.

My vote goes to poker chips

Poker Chips are harder to make then coins. The chips in Vegas are not the plastic chips you buy at wal-mart. Why would anyone out side of Las Vegas use poker chips as currency? They would use Gold coins or Caps if they were just coming to the west or raiders or something. Caps can be used but should be worth nothing next to Gold coins and most NPC should not take them only just a few of them if any.
Every Casino would have their own Chips as well. Unless they are all run by the same people. But then there would be many hundreds of different chips, who would pick which one to use? Again why would any town out side Las Vegas use them?