During the late 18th Century, there was a widespread shortage of coinage throughout the UK. This often resulted in workers going without money as businesses struggled to find the cash to pay their staff (see Conder Tokens, etc.).
In Derbyshire, one mill owner, Richard Arkwight, came up with an ingenious solution that both solved the issue of having enough coinage to pay his workforce whilst at the same time ensuring company loyalty. He purchased a bulk lot of Spanish Dollars and put his own mark in the centre of the coin. This effectively created his own currency, thereby ensuring that none of the coinage could be spent anywhere other than in company owned shops or used to pay rent on company owned accommodation.
The coin below is from Cromford Mills:
Hope this is as interesting to other collectors as it was to me.
LDC