GREECE teeters on the brink of bankruptcy and leaving the Euro.

It might have happened by the time the ink on this column has dried after rolling off the press. The Greeks might be dusting off the drachma as you read this.

I’ve found it fascinating watching Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras ask for more bailouts.

Part of me admires the pugnacious Greek people’s refusal to accept austerity at any cost.

If they leave the Euro it’s going to hurt us in the UK but, still, I’ve always loved an underdog who sticks it to authority.

Of course it’s ruffling feathers in Brussels with German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French Prime Minister Francois Hollande scared if they’re not firm with Greece their own citizens will start revolting, asking why they are enduring austerity measures while Greece gets more handouts.

The debate will rage forever over whether it’s better to be part of a bigger currency, such as the Euro, or to retain one’s sovereignty, as the UK has with sterling.

The Greek crisis is a salutary reminder of how flimsy the foundations are on which our societies are built.

They truly are houses of cards.

It’s easy to forget this in our world of sophisticated technology and communications.

Money is at the heart of it. But what is money?

Those paper notes and metal discs in our pockets, they’re not actually worth anything.

They are symbols of a tacit agreement we have with one another. In early societies there was no money, merely an exchange of services or trades. So the roofer agreed to fix the thatching on the butcher’s cottage in return for a few joints of beef and some sausages.

The Devon town of Totnes introduced its own currency in 2007.

Residents and visitors go to the bank on the high street and exchange their sterling for the Totnes pound which is legal tender in the town’s shops.

It seems a great way of keeping the money flowing and under control in a small area and a brilliant example of a micro-economy at work.

It’s much easier to avoid a credit crunch and to keep everybody solvent when the economy is this small.

Ultimately, we need confidence in our markets because confidence is king.

Mark Twain wrote a story called The Million Pound Bank Note in which two wealthy brothers have a bet over whether the mere possession of the note – a symbol of wealth – was enough to support the holder for a month, based purely on goodwill.

It’s like the pop star who gets the best table at a restaurant purely because of who they are.

Money really only works when it’s flowing, keeping the economy lubricated. Stuffing it in your mattress does nobody any good.

Let’s hope there’s enough confidence about to keep Greece in the Euro.