Money market funds, also known as money market mutual funds, were developed during the early 1970s as an investment vehicle that allows investors to put their capital resources together to acquire assets that would provide a better return than an interest-bearing cash account at a bank. They were originally conceived as alternatives to bank accounts; during this time, banks were limited in what interest rate they were allowed to give to account holders. Money market funds maintain a stable net asset value of $1.00 per share, and are able to pay dividends to shareholders.