McDonald’s is celebrating the semi-centennial of the birth of the Big Mac with its global currency MacCoin, writes Bill Murphy Jr. for Inc. magazine.

The Big Mac was born at a McDonald’s in Uniontown, Pa., in 1967, but it took a year before it became an item nationwide. So McDonald’s decided to mark its five decades this year on Aug. 2, the date that would have been the 100th birthday of its creator, Michael “Jim” Delligatti.

Delligatti ate his creation at least once a week until he passed away two years ago at the age of 98.

On the day of the celebration, anyone who purchased a Big Mac also received a MacCoin. The global currency has become tradable for a Big Mac in 50 countries around the world, including the U.S. The coin has five collectible designs, with each representing a decade of the Big Mac.

According to McDonald’s CEO Steve Easterbrook, the coin was inspired by the financial magazine The Economist. Each year, it publishes the “Big Mac Index,” which measures the relative values of global currencies based on the cost of the iconic sandwich in each country.

Read more about MacCoins in Inc. magazine by clicking here.
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