What happens if someone goes away leaving a negative balance?

Not much, provided that the rest of the members carry on trading with each other. Members can’t take local units with them and can’t spend them outside the system. This question reflects a justifiable concern about cheating within a co-operative activity. They have simply taken more goods and services from the trading community than they have given. However, with conventional money this would be a problem – if a cheque bounces, the money is not available to the payee. With local units, even though the member leaving is in the negative, the member who they traded with is in the positive and they have those units readily available for their next trade. Turnover is the key to a successful system, not the level of credits or commitments. Turnover reflects the amount of transfers happening within the community and also reflects the efficiency of administration in facilitating these trades.