Without air and water life no worka.
P2P commerce is also essential.
Past human history is checkered with currency manipulation and conflict..
Enter a new element for humanity; trustless p2p currency, globally decentralized...
Something humanity has been craving since the dawn of human history.

~snip~
How did you get to that conclusion based on what that person said? How do you know they will trade nature for technology. I think many people would do that anyway. They do not think it out.
Well, you've answered your own question. See, "
many people would do that anyway". Comparing the nature's essential characteristics to a technology is simply a sign of greed.
There most certainly was money 500 years ago. I was in the form of rare metals minted into coins. Money has been a concept since the medieval times and before then we would trade. Trading is sort of like money but is very limited and that is where the coins came in. You also would not have to carry much around with you in order to trade just a pouch full of coins. Instead of a whole caravan full of goods to trade. I know salt and spices were also traded frequently.
The idea of making a coin to use it as a primary medium of trading in the medieval period is still irrelevant in the list of how necessary is the air and water for the people. But before this precious rate of metal was discovered by humanity, their trading system was based on barter trading, where supplies will be traded for another supplies.