19th century, from earlier forms such as gold speaks (1666, in full, “Man prates, but gold speaks.”), as translation from Italian by Giovanni Torriano, in Piazza Universale di Proverbi Italiani: or, A Common Place of Italian Proverbs and Proverbial Phrases, 179.[1]
It is easier to accomplish goals using money instead of just talk.
2014 April 25, Paul Krugman, “The Piketty Panic”, in The New York Times[1], →ISSN:
Money still talks — indeed, thanks in part to the Roberts court, it talks louder than ever. Still, ideas matter too, shaping both how we talk about society and, eventually, what we do.
Japanese: 金が物を言う(kane ga mono o iu), 地獄の沙汰も金次第(ja)(jigoku no sata mo kane shidai), 閻魔大王が下す地獄での判決も金次第では軽くもなる(Enma Daiō ga kudasu jigoku de no hanketsu mo kane shidaide wa karuku mo naru)
