[randomdata]

Cash went out. One half of the double entry is correct. But nothing came back in return. There is no corresponding element of trade to account for. The transaction doesn't balance. Which is obvious in human terms. That's the point of a gift – the transaction isn't supposed to balance! But formal accounting methods are not as fluid as people are.

So, of course, in reality money was created (and then destroyed, it being a gift) in order to make the transaction whole. But as far as this magical fairytale land where money can't be created the entry doesn't work. You can't account for nothing.

Let's say it's not a gift. Let's say someone is borrowing $1,000 cash instead. The same applies. There is no corresponding element in trade to account for. It doesn’t balance. Thus, when the cash goes out you need to create money out of thin air to satisfy the other side of the transaction, which is later destroyed when the cash is returned.

[thereticent]

You're misunderstanding double-entry bookkeeping. Something does not have to come into the company got every transaction moving something out of the company. If your company gives $1000 to Billy, you document a $1000 debit from your gift account and a $1000 to Billy's account payable. The goal isn't to get any one account to zero but to get a source and destination recorded separately for every movement of funds.

Lending would be at least two sets of doubly-recorded transactions.

[randomdata]

> The goal isn't to get any one account to zero but to get a source and destination recorded separately

Right, because transactions are actually two-sided. I give you something, you give me something in return. That's how people work with each other. And, as such, we account for a source and destination because that matches what actually happens.

But often times you only offer a promise. For example, I write some software for you, and in return you offer me food. But I'm not hungry right now, and I certainly don't want food that is going to spoil before I get around to eating it, so instead you promise to give me fresh food sometime in the future when I am hungry.

How do you account for that? You received software services, but gave nothing back in return other than a promise. Well, what if you recorded the promise? Software services in, promise out. You got your software, I get my food, the credit and debit accounts match. Everyone is happy.

Congratulations, you just created money out of thin air! -- And now, later on, I am feeling hungry and am ready to take you up on your food offer. You give me the food, I give back the promise, food out, promise in, I'm fed, debits match credits, and the money is destroyed.

That's exactly why we invented accounting: To keep track of the money being created and destroyed. You wouldn't need accounting if promises never needed to be made. Without promises, you'd have the software services, I'd have the food, and we'd have no reason to think about the transaction ever again. It is the promise that has us wanting to look back to make sure that promises outstanding are made good.