However, this rollout was not about fixing exchange rates for precious metals, nor about mutually granting minting rights. It was about replacing local currencies with Austrian Empire currency.
Of course, this was only the first step. Franz's true aim was to lay the groundwork for issuing paper money in the future. The so-called Anticipation Note model had far too narrow a range of application and simply could not achieve the effects of paper currency.
Once paper money could replace local currency, the Austrian Empire would have effectively completed its economic assimilation of the region. In theory, it could use paper money to continuously siphon profits and resources from the area.
But compared to all that, the Austrian Empire's most urgent problem remained feeding its 47 million people. Europeans did not truly begin eating their fill until after the end of World War II.
The historical reasons were rather complicated, however. For most of the period after the twentieth century began, it was not that there was no food, but that people could not afford it.
The Austrian Empire's current problem was much simpler: insufficient productive capacity. Once famine or war struck and food production fell, people would starve to death.
Even though Franz had established a food security system, some people would still die after dawn had broken.
Because a wartime system could not last forever. Once the market was opened up, food prices would rise, leaving some people unable to afford food.
Franz would hold celebrations and charitable events under all sorts of pretexts to help these people weather the crisis. Beyond material aid, recruitment by the Austrian imperial factories, estates, and overseas development companies had never ceased either.
But human effort had its limits. Some people still could not escape the fate of being eliminated, and the Austrian