The Top Six Times The Financial World Pranked Us

Just when you thought the financial word was a place that lacked comedy, we are unexpectedly delivered these unexpected pranks that show us that they too like to partake in April Fool's Day fun.

1. Econoland- April Fool’s Day 2009

The Economist / Via economist.com

In 2009, readers of magazine The Economist were excited by a new London attraction that “combines the magic of a theme park with the excitement of macroeconomics.” Rides would include the "fiscal fantasyland" and the "chamber of horrors." The park introduction included a virtual map and intrigued finance aficionados, unti they realized they were spoofed.

2. Downloadable Money - April Fool's Day 2001

talk.payloadz.com / Via hoaxes.org

The British bank Abbey National came up with the idea to “offer” the dream: money that could simply be downloaded and printed from home. However, the tempting prank never came to maturation; the Bank of England expressed worries about encouraging forgery and Abbey National’s joke was halted. In the meanwhile we can continue to fantasize about ‘downloadable money’ being a reality.

3. Lottery Tickets Pension Payments- April Fool's Day 2004

slingogaming.com / Via hoaxes.org

The The Tokyo Shimbun informed the public of the government's interest in giving out lottery tickets to balance out pension cuts. The public was excited about the opportunity to expand their wealth up till they remembered to check the calendar date.

4. Berlin Sells Railway Station Names Rights - April Fool's Day 1999

wordpress.com / Via hoaxes.org

The German Der Tagesspiegel revealed that the rights to Berlin's railway station's names would be granted to the highest bidders. This would raise a lot of money for the City of Berlin and let the public put their personal mark on the city. Imagine naming a station after your girlfriend - April Fool's!

5. The Yenom Tree- April Fool's Day 1963

salvatoremanzi.com / Via hoaxes.org

VIEW magazine revealed the exotic collectible known as the "yenom tree" , a rare plant that sprouted "bright, green American one-dollar bills with uniformly high serial numbers." Readers were increasingly interested when they learned that the tree owner was interested in partnering with the U.S Mint to plant more seedlings of her tree. It turns out, all readers from this April 1st magazine edition are still waiting for their sapling.

6. The Danish Money Exchange- April Fool's Day 1980

colourbox.com / Via hoaxes.org

When the National Bank of Denmark decided to issue a new bill of currency, Danes had to allow themselves some time to adjust to using the new style of cash. It was on April Fool's Day in that year (1980) where pranksters of the newspaper Roskilde Tidende decided to tell the public that the new bills were actually counterfeit. Now imagine the public outcry when they thought their fortunes were fake.