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Chris Jericho has proclaimed many times that he created the iconic Money in the Bank ladder match. The first-ever Money in the Bank ladder match took place at WrestleMania 21 in 2005 involving five elite superstars.
On RAW, that was exactly what Chris Jericho wanted. In a storyline leading up to WrestleMania 21, Y2J pitched an idea in front of the WWE Universe. With big matches such as Batista vs Triple H and JBL vs John Cena already booked for WrestleMania 21, Chris Jericho proposed the opportunity of a lifetime.
The match he proposed involved himself, five other superstars, and a bunch of steel ladders. The idea was "Money in the Bank" and Chris Jericho confirmed that he invented the match. However, it wasn't fully a one-man idea.
On an episode of Talk is Jericho, Chris Jericho revealed how he pitched the Money in the Bank ladder match to ex-WWE writer Brian Gewirtz (H/T 411 Mania):
“So I came up with the idea to do a match, like a ladder match. A six-way ladder match. And Brian Gewirtz, who was a good writer at the time said, ‘well what’s at stake?’ So I said, ‘well why don’t you have a contract where the winner gets a title shot the next night?’ Then Brian said, ‘Well, why don’t you make it you can use it any time over the following year and you can cash it in at any time?"
Chris Jericho then revealed that they took the idea to Vince McMahon and he loved it. However, his only condition was that it had to be in the briefcase. Chris Jericho speculated that Vince McMahon wanted it to be seen as a trophy - something the superstars could carry around and use.
He described it as a "three-way invention":
"So it was a really cool kind of a three-way invention of this match because even though Vince’s little thing was just the briefcase, the briefcase has become synonymous with the show," said Jericho about the Money in the Bank ladder match concept.
Did Chris Jericho win the first Money in the Bank ladder match?
Surprisingly, Chris Jericho has never won the Money in the Bank ladder match. The first-ever Money in the Bank match involved Chris Jericho, Edge, Kane, Christian, Chris Benoit and Shelton Benjamin.
Edge walked out as the first-ever Mr. Money in the Bank. He would cash in several months later at New Year's Revolution in January 2006 - defeating John Cena to win his first of eleven World Championships.
Chris Jericho participated in five Money in the Bank matches in total. Apart from the WrestleMania 21 match, his most memorable Money in the Bank appearance was in 2016 when Dean Ambrose won.
The Women's Money in the Bank match was only introduced in 2017 - with Carmella being the inaugural winner.
