Some of us may be taught how money and banking "supposedly" work, and then subsequently figure out the real way they work—found out only by digging yourself and investing the time.
Money is essentially created from nothing by certain parties, and then accepted as debt borne by the rest of society (as consumers, companies and countries), who are all conned and enslaved, or at the least willingly play along with the charade.
That’s why bankers are often labeled banksters, but they’re not all equal in the pecking order.
Start with this short intro, The Beginner's Guide to Understanding The Fraud of Fiat Currency & Central Banking, by @EndTheFed.Org as a good jump-off.
Money, in its physical sense, can, and has been anything, through the ages in different societies, be it sea shells, stones, boar tusks, peppercorns, grains of rice, cattle, pieces of wood (like the tally stick), metal coins / coinage (including gold and silver), paper (and more recently, plastic) notes, and more, as summarized here.
All that's REALLY needed, is a group of people believe in an item / system, accept it for value, and then there are other desired physical characteristics.
There's debate on the topic of what “real” money (gold and silver) is, or not, as with fiat currency. Case in point with Gold & Silver Are Real Money! by 
The vast majority of money in current circulation worldwide is computer digits, but there’s nothing wrong with that. The real problem lies with the "debt" / scarcity and concentrated control in private hands angle.
There are parts of the world where physical currency is still needed, but they are rapidly trying to shut that down. Behold India's overnight demonetizaton debacle in November 2016, which is covered in extensive detail (over 9 parts) with India – On a Downward Spiral.
The big con these last several hundred years (and even further back) is that a small group of people and entities have come to control the issuance and distribution of money, then by extension, the control of nations and individuals through a massive debt deceit. Its understanding remains largely unknown.
Here’s a short intro from a US centric perspective, but the concept applies to just about all central banks worldwide (e.g., US Federal Reserve, Bank of Japan, and European Central Bank).
Above them, lies the Bank for International Settlements in Basel, Switzerland.
Along for the heist are The World Bank and International Monetary Fund, which play complementary debt enslavement roles on a country- by-country basis.
One personal favorite is The Money Masters (1996) by Bill Still. At 3.5 hours below, it’s a big meal to digest, but it dives deep and covers hundreds of years in sweeping fashion. A shorter, updated version from 2009 is The Secret of Oz but Bob prefers the original. Together they could be called CSI Global: The Great Central Bank Robbery.
A standout, seminal book is Carroll Quigley’s 1966 Tragedy and Hope, but at 1348 pages, it sure as shit ain't for everyone. It really drills down. Make sure to get an uncensored / unfiltered edition. A two-tier summary can get you going at Tragedy and Hope - A History of Banking and Money by Carroll Quigley. There are other books out there on this topic, but this one’s a heavyweight.
On the consumer front, for supposed “loans” doled out by commercial banks, be it for a home mortgage, student / car loan, line of credit, and credit card, it is actually your signature, that enables the money creation (as a credit in your account) from nothing as a promissory note (debt to the bank). The bank "lends" your sorry ass nothing, even though you are led to beLIEve that the money truck be backing up, going “Beep, beep, beep” into your account from their reserves.
This key snippet from the 2007 documentary, Zeitgeist, summarizes
First National Bank of Montgomery v. Jerome Daly (aka The Credit River Decision) from 1968-69 in Minnesota.
That case, nullified and buried since, is just that in its sanitized Wikipedia entry but its core principle holds true and is a suppressed knowledge nugget. Further, the Justice in the matter, died in a “fishing accident” almost 6 months later.
More can be found on this case as follows with:
- The Credit River Decision
- The Credit River Decision - Jerome Daly's Letters
- Jerome Daly - The Mahoney Credit River Decision
Other related monetary aspects, like, erhm, say ... what one’s birth certificate really is and more importantly what it, and by extension YOU, are worth, in many countries, will be covered another time. Same deal with taxes and inflation, the latter being a sneaky-ass way the system further cheats us via devaluation. But then you adjust and adapt, as below.
The end game is this, telegraphed in this 1988 Economist cover, for complete monetary domination.
Just around the corner and the signs are everywhere. It will no doubt be marketed as salvation from ruin and a debt jubilee--a fresh start from the ashes, with a new "real" fake money system more tightly controlled than ever.
Given today’s topic, it was friggin’ tempting to close with that 1973 classic, Pink Floyd – Money (video). That song means a lot more once you’re hip to the trickery. Instead, we end on a different lighter, more summery note, that turns the original Rhye version up a few notches in tempo.
Rhye – Open (WMNSTUDIES Bootleg)
Alternative Pop / Indie Dance / Nu Disco
Bootleg / Unreleased (2013)
The Stuff (or Shit) They Don't Want You To Know About Department (aka TSTDWYTKAD)
P.S. Bob’s taking a few weeks off, so it’ll be month end before more TSTDWYTKAD. That is the porpoise [sic] of vacation, i.e., as in taking a break, for real, and to chillax. Makes the mind sharper and faster when your ass gets back in the saddle.