Currencies

AED | Emirati Dirham

• In the largest shopping malls, American Dollars and British Pounds are also accepted beside the Emirati Dirham.
• Until the middle of the 1960s (before the introduction of the Dirham), Indian Rupee was used in the Arab Emirates, that is the reason why older people still mention Rupee as the national currency even today.
• Between 1966 and 1973, Bahraini Dinar was used in Abu Dhabi, while in the other emirates Qatari and Dubai Riyal was used.
• The Dirham that is used today was introduced in 1973, it is sub-divided into fils.
• It is very easy to purchase cheap petrol in the country. For instance, if you buy a Snickers bar, you can get free petrol worth a Dirham.
• The United Arab Emirates has the seventh highest GDP per capita (preceding the United States of America, Germany, Japan, Holland, etc.).
• India is the most important trading partner of the United Arab Emirates.

Banknotes currently in circulation

ALL | Albanian Lek

• The Lek is the official currency of Albania. The lek was named after Alexander the Great III, whose name is often shortened to Leka in Albanian. Alexander’s portrait appeared on the obverse of the 1 lek coin, while the reverse showed him on his horse.
• It is subdivided into 100 „qindarka“, although qindarka are no longer issued. The name qindarka comes from the Albanian „qind“ menaing one hunderd.
• Before the First World War the Ottoman Turkish piastre was in full circulation, but following the military occupation of the country by various continental powers the gold franc ( Franc Germinal ) was adopted as the monetary unit.
• The lek was introduced as the first Albanian currency in February 1926. A second series of notes was issued in 1976 when the country changed its name to the People’s Socialist Republic. 500 leke notes were introduced on 28 June 1991, followed by denominations of 200 and 1000 leke on 1 October 1992.
• Currently, the banknotes come in the denominations of 200, 500, 1000 and 5,000 lek and coins in denominations of 1, 5, 10, 20, 50 and 100 lek.

Banknotes currently in circulation

AUD | Australian Dollar

• In 1788, when European settlers first reached Australia, they used products for trading instead of money (rum was their favourite “product”).
• In 1966, Australian Dollar was introduced instead of Australian Pound, therefore it is a relatively new currency.
• As far as the name of the new currency is concerned, more than 1,000 options emerged including “Koala”, “Royal” or “Kanga”. Finally, it received the name “Dollar” but many people called the official currency of Australia as “Aussie”.
• It was the Australians who used plastic to make their money for the first time in the world. It is much more durable than paper, and it is also more difficult to counterfeit.
• Australian Dollar is a currency that produces the fifth greatest turnover in the world (following American Dollar, Euro, Yen and British Pound).

Banknotes currently in circulation

BAM | Bosnian Mark

• Bosnian Mark was introduced in 1998 in order to reunite the shattered country under the pressure of the UNO supervision. Before the introduction of the Mark, Bosnian Dinar was used in Bosniak areas, Yugoslavian Dinar was used in Serbian territories and Croatian Kuna was used in
• Croatian areas while German Mark was accepted throughout the whole country.
• It is only in Bosnia where you can purchase Bosnian Mark, it is not traded anywhere else in the world.
• In 2009, 1 and 5 Mark banknotes were withdrawn from circulation.
• In 2012, new and higher quality 10, 20, 50 and 100 Mark banknotes were issued, which were made of higher quality paper, and include more security features than their antecedents.

Banknotes currently in circulation

BGN | Bulgarian Lev

• The word “lev” means lion in archaic Bulgarian.
• Bulgarian Lev was introduced in 1881 as the official currency of Bulgaria with a value equal to the French Franc at that time. During World War 2, it was fixed to the German Mark (1 Mark = 32.75 Lev), then to the Soviet Ruble in 1944 (1 Ruble = 15 Lev).
• Between 1943 and 1952 only banknotes but no coins were issued.
• Since its introduction in 1881, it was renewed four times, today it is fixed to the euro.

Banknotes currently in circulation

BRL | Brazilian Real

• As opposed to the American Dollar, a dot is used to divide thousands and a comma is used to divide decimal numbers. For instance, one thousand dollars and 20 cents is written in the USA in the following way: 1,000.20; while the same amount in Brazilian Real would be like: 1.000,20.
• The Portuguese expression “real” has two meanings: “realistic” and “royal”.
• The Brazilian currency has undergone 8 changes until it reached its present form. The Real was already in use in Brazil in the 17th century, but as a result of the intensive inflation, Cruzeiro was also introduced in 1942. This was replaced by the so-called new Cruzeiro between 1967 and 1970, but they returned to the old currency again in 1970. In the 1980s, Brazil was hit by heavy inflation again, therefore a new currency called Cruzado was introduced (1 cruzado = 1,000 cruzeiro). In 1990 Brazil started to use the Cruzeiro again, but the efforts made to stop the inflation failed, so the new currency called Cruzeiro Real temporarily became the new currency in 1993. Finally in 1944, Brazilian Real became the national currency of the country, which is considered to be relatively stable compared to its predecessors.
• Brazilian banknotes are remarkably individual, each has a different colour (vivid colours are used), and it is an interesting features that each banknote has a different animal on the reverse side. There are 7 banknotes in circulation, but no 1-real notes are issued any longer (however, there exist 1-real coins), but they are still in use.
• Brazilian Real is sub-divided into centavo. There are five different coins including the 5, 10, 25 and 50 centavo and the 1-real coins.

Banknotes currently in circulation

CAD | Canadian Dollar

• Canada’s official currency since 1867.
• The banknotes preserve their nominal value, and each banknote issued after 1935 is used as national currency.
• One of the special characteristics of Canadian Dollar coins (including circulation, commemorative and investment coins) is that they still feature the image of the reigning British monarch.
• Coins:
  • “Loonie” – one-dollar coin named after the national bird of Canada
  • “Toonie” or “Twoonie” – two-dollar coin
  • “Quarter” – worth 25 cents, and bears the image of a caribou
  • “Dime” – worth 10 cents, bears the image of a special Canadian schooner
  • “Nickel” – worth 5 cents, it is made of nickel

Banknotes currently in circulation

CHF | Swiss Franc

• Official currency of Switzerland and Liechtenstein.
• Swiss 1,000 Franc banknote is the world’s highest value currently issued banknote.
• In April 2016, 50-franc banknote, the first member of the new banknote series (ninth series) was issued. According to the plans, it will be followed by other banknotes (20 and 100-franc notes) in six months.
• The new series include 15 security features.

Banknotes currently in circulation

CNY | Chinese Yuan

• The name of the official Chinese currency is Renminbi, its unit of account is Yuan, and it was first issued in 1948.
• The word “renminbi” translates to “people’s currency”.
• 1 Yuan can be divided into 10 Jiao, 1 Jiao can be further divided into 10 Fens.
• Since 1948, 5 series have been issued of which series four and five are currently in use.
• Every banknote is of a different colour and size (100 Yuan notes are the biggest and 1 Yuan notes are the smallest).
• The front side of every banknote of series five bears the image of Mao Zedong, while on the back side famous places of China can be seen.

Banknotes currently in circulation

CZK | Czech Koruna

• In 1993 after the dissolution of Czechoslovakia (from the previous Czechoslovakian Koruna), a separate Czech and Slovakian Koruna were born. (In Slovakia, euro is used as the national currency of the country.)
• In the Czech Republic, the majority of the population does not support the introduction of the Euro.
• In order to mitigate the adverse impacts of the economic crisis of 2008, the Czech central bank started to communicate in 2012 that it was prepared to use the exchange rate to ease the monetary policy further if the need arose. The mere announcement exercised such a huge impact that no actual intervention was needed until November 2013, because the the exchange rate of the Czech Koruna weakened, therefore the monetary conditions eased, the impact of which lasted until the summer of 2013. The short-term outlook indicated that the previously effected monetary ease was not enough to reach the inflation target, so the National Bank announced that it was prepared to intervene in the foreign exchange market in order to be able to maintain the exchange rate close to CZK 27 to the euro. In addition to the above, they also announced that the central bank was prepared to make such interventions as long as it was necessary to reach the inflation target.

Banknotes currently in circulation

DKK | Danish Krone

• Although Denmark is a member state of the European Union, it did not join the Eurozone, and its national currency is the Danish Krone (similarly to Greenland).
• Krone was introduced in 1873 as part of the Scandinavian Monetary Union (founding members: Denmark and Sweden), to which union Norway also joined in 1875. The union was dissolved in 1914, but each of the three countries decided to preserve Krone as their national currency.
• 1 Krone is sub-divided into 100 Ø, the expression means “gold coin”.
• Although the major political parties favour the introduction of the euro, the population rejected joining the Eurozone in a referendum held in 2000.

Banknotes currently in circulation

EUR | Euro

• The official currency of the European Union, which is used in 19 (Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, Estonia, Finland, France, Greece, Holland, Ireland, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxemburg, Malta, Germany, Italy, Portugal, Spain, Slovakia, Slovenia) of the 28 member states and in the institutions of the European Union. The 19 countries above form the Eurozone.
• According to contract, the Euro is also used in Andorra, Monaco, San Marino and the Vatican, and in Kosovo and Montenegro but not as the official currency of the countries. Furthermore, the Euro is also used in such areas outside Europe, which are either parts or dependent territories of any member states of the Eurozone: Guadeloupe, French Guyana, Martinique, Mayotte, Réunion, Saint Pierre and Miquelon, and the French Southern and Antarctic Lands.
• After the American Dollar, the euro is the second most significant reserve currency, producing the second greatest turnover, and it has the highest combined value in circulation in the world.
• The economic purpose of the Euro is to improve the operations of the unified market within the European Union and to enhance the movement of the “four freedoms” (goods, services, people and capital).

Banknotes currently in circulation

GBP | British Pound

• The official name of the currency is Pound Sterling, but it is very rarely used. In spoken English it is often referred to as “quid”, which comes from the Latin saying “Something for something” (“Quid pro quo”).
• British Pound is the oldest currency in the world that is still in use (its origins go back to the 8th century). The British Pound produces the fourth greatest turnover after the American Dollar, Euro, Japanese Yen.
• Until 1971 the British Pound was based on the duodecimal system, which meant that 1 Pound Sterling was worth 240 pence (1 Pound = 20 shilling, 1 shilling = 12 pence). In 1971, they started to use the decimal system, on the basis of which the change of the Pound is the penny, and 1 Pound Sterling is worth 100 pence.
• On the back side of each banknotes, a famous English person can be seen, a different person for every series. On the 5-pound note of 2016 the picture of Sir Winston Churchill, while on the 10-pound note of 2017 the picture of Jane Austen will be illustrated.

Banknotes currently in circulation

HUF | Hungarian Forint

• The currently used Hungarian Forint was introduced on 1 August 1946. However, the forint already existed in Medieval Times. King Charles Robert introduced gold forint in the early 1320s following the model of the gold coins of Florence (this is where the name forint comes from), which were first made in Kremnica (Kremnica ducats).
• Between 1750 and 1892 silver forints were also in use during the reign of the Habsburg Monarchy and at the age of the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy. In addition to the above, Lajos Kossuth also had gold coins made (including the famous Kossuth notes) in 1848-49.
• The first series of banknotes included only two members: 10 and 100-forint notes. In addition to this, the Central Bank of Hungary issued 2-, 10-, 20-filler and 1-, 2 and 5-forint metal coins. In 1951, 50-forint, and in 1970 500-forint banknotes were issued into circulation. At the time of the change of the regime, 5,000-forint notes were issued for the first time, which were followed by 10,000-forint notes in 1997 and 20,000-forint notes in 2001. The Central Bank of Hungary issued a new series of circulation coins in 1993, and a new series of banknotes in 1997, while the previously issued coins and banknotes were withdrawn from circulation from October 1999.
• Hungarian banknotes are made from cotton, which makes it easier to recognize and ensures longer circulation.

Banknotes currently in circulation

HRK | Croatian Kuna

• The name Kuna means “marten”. The name comes from medieval times when marten pelts were used as a unit of value.
• The currently used Kuna was introduced in June 1994 replacing the dinar, for the issuance of which the Croatian National Bank is responsible.
• The banknotes are similar to the formerly used German mark both in terms of appearance and denomination, for example the 10-Mark and the first 10-Kuna notes bore so much resemblance that the Croatian banknote had to be reprinted in a different colour.
• Lipa (meaning “linden tree”) is the change for the Kuna.
• On Lipa coins the images of plants living in Croatia, while on Kuna coins that of Croatian animals are depicted. It is an interesting feature that the name of such plants and animals are given in the Croatian language if issued in an odd year or in Latin if issued in an even year.

Banknotes currently in circulation

ILS | Israeli Shekel

• The new Israeli Shekel is the national currency of Israel, which replaced the old Israeli Shekel on 1st January 1986. Before that time, Israeli Lira was used until 1980.
• The currency was name after an ancient currency mentioned in the Bible.
• The banknotes also include Braille so that the blind may also identify and distinguish them.
  Agora is the change for the Shekel, 1 Shekel = 100 agoras.
• Israel is the major innovation area of the fintech (financial technological) sector. Out of 20 countries, Israel has the greatest fintech sector (preceding Great-Britain and the United States of America). In Israel there are more than 400 start-ups in areas such as virtual payment, banking, community financing or financial planning. In 2014 fintech companies invested a huge capital (USD 369 million), and Tel-Aviv became the 21st most important financial centre. Israel’s innovation activities attract global financial institutions such as PayPal, Santander, SunGard and Visa. International financial institutions are also present as investors in the country, in terms of investor confidence in venture capital Israel is only by preceded by the USA according to Deloitte.

Banknotes currently in circulation

JPY | Japanese Yen

• Rice was used as a unit of value for a long time, which was measured in koku (1 koku = 180 litres of rice). In the 8-9th centuries, coins were already in use, but not to a significant extent.
• Between 1336 and 1870 the so-called “mon” was used as a currency, which was based on the Chinese character mon. There was a hole in the middle of the coins, because they were put in strings (which is preserved by the 5 and 50-yen coins).
• In 1871 the Meiji-government introduced the Yen, which replaced the oval-shaped coins. This is where its name also comes from (Yen, in Japanese “en” means “round”).
• Seeing that Japan mainly relies on exports rather than imports, it is the country’s interest to keep the Yen weak, because a permanently strong Yen would discourage foreign customers from buying Japanese products, and foreign companies operating in Japan would also relocate their site to another country.

Banknotes currently in circulation

KRW | South Korean Won

• The won or the Korean Republic Won is the currency of South Korea. The won is abbreviated with the sign ₩. It is divided into 100 jeon.
• The South Korean won was initially pegged to the U.S. dollar at a rate of 15 won = 1 dollar. A series of devaluations followed, the later ones in part due to the Korean War.
• In 1946, the Bank of Joseon introduced 10 and 100 won notes. These were followed in 1949 by 5 and 1000 won notes.
• The first South Korean won was replaced by the hwan on February 15, 1953 at a rate of 1 hwan = 100 won.
• The won was reintroduced on June 10, 1962 at a rate of 1 won = 10 hwan. It became the sole legal tender on March 22, 1975 with the withdrawal of the last circulating hwan coins.
• The banknotes come in the denominations of 1000, 5000, 10 000 and 50 000 won and coins in denominations of 1, 5, 10 , 50, 100 and 500 won.

Banknotes currently in circulation

MKD | Macedonian Denar

• The name denar comes from the name of the ancient Roman monetary unit, denarius. It is subdivided into 100 deni.
• The first Macedonian denar was established on 26 April 1992. to establish the monetary independence of the Republic of North Macedonia. In May 1993, the currency was reformed.
• The 50 deni coin was withdrawn in 2013, due to its low mintage it was practically never seen in circulation.
• Since 1996 a large number of commemorative coins for collectors has been issued.
  In 2016, 200 and 2000 denari notes were issued, while the National Bank of the Republic of North Macedonia will begin withdrawing the 5000 denari banknote from circulation as part of the National Banks plans to rebalance the current structure of the notes in circulation.
• The banknotes come in the denominations of 10, 50, 100, 500, 1000 and 5000 denar and coins in denominations of 1, 2 and 5 denara and 50 denija.

Banknotes currently in circulation

MXN | Mexican Peso

• Mexico produces the largest amount of silver in the world.
• The sign “$”was first used to illustrate the national currency of Mexico, much earlier than it was used for the American Dollar.
• A 20-peso banknote wears off within 32 months on average, while a 50-peso note made from the same material may be used for 39 months.
• Mexican Peso is sub-divided into centavo, which produces the highest turnover in Latin America.
• The word “peso” means “weight”, which refers to the weight of gold or silver that were used to make the coins earlier.
• The Mexican currency was called Peso after the Spanish Dollar when the American Dollar appeared, and was also fixed to the Spanish Dollar.
• When Mexico became independent in 1821, it started to use a currency that was independent from the Spanish but preserved the term.

Banknotes currently in circulation

NOK | Norwegian Krone

• Norwegian Krone became the national currency of Norway in 1875, when the country joined the Scandinavian Monetary Union. The change of the Krone is Øre.
• On the 10 and 20-krone coins, the effigy of the current monarch is depicted, while on the 10-krone coin his motto is also illustrated. Earlier, on 1 and 5-krone coins the portrait of the monarch was represented, but now they illustrate only royal and national symbols.
• Between 1875 and 1878 the complete coin series was issued: 1, 2, 5, 10, 25, 50 Øre and 1, 2, 10, 20-krone coins. In 1917, 2-krone coins were withdrawn from circulation, the first 1 and 2 Øre coins were issued in 1963, the last 10 Øre coins were made in 1992, and on 1st May 2012 50 Øre coins were also withdrawn from circulation. Currently, only krone coins are used. The banknotes come in the denominations of 50, 100, 200, 500 and 1,000 krones.
• Norway has a huge oil reserve, the excessive extraction of which deteriorates the other economic sectors. Returns from the raw material strengthen the country’s currency against other currencies, which makes it more expensive to produce for export, therefore, the activities based on export will deteriorate. The Norwegian central bank realized the risk of appreciation of the Norwegian krone, and has been making efforts to weaken the currency since 2011. In 2011 and 2012 the bank reduced the interest rates in order to reduce inflation close to the inflation target of 2.5%.
• The returns from the oil sector were used to create a fund, which is composed of a domestic and an international investment fund. The Norwegian Fund is the financing mechanism established by Norway as the donor country. The purpose of the fund is to decrease economic and social inequalities, and to enhance bilateral connections between the donor country and the beneficiary countries. The beneficiary countries of the Norwegian fund are those member states of the European Union which joined the EU after 2004, including Hungary. There are five areas (program areas) which are supported by the donor country. These are: Green industry innovation, Descent work and tripartite dialogue, Bilateral research cooperation, Capacity building and institutional cooperation, Public health.

Banknotes currently in circulation

NZD | New Zealand Dollar

• The national currency of New Zealand is often called “kiwi, referring to the national bird of the country, which can be seen on the 1-dollar coin.
• New Zealand has had its own national currency since 1933, but it has been called dollar since 1967 only, before that pound was used (which was already different from the British Pound though).
• New Zealand Dollar is among the top 10 most traded currencies around the world.
• New Zealand is often called a “plastic nation”, because you can use your card for payment almost anywhere, and many people make use of this opportunity. The rate of cash payments is on a gradual decline.
• New Zealand Dollar is the national currency of the Cook-islands, Niue, Tokelau and the Pitcairn-islands as well.
• The portrait of the official monarch of New Zealand, Queen Elizabeth II is illustrated on every banknote. Her effigy also appears on 20-dollar notes.

Banknotes currently in circulation

PLN | Polish Zloty

• The meaning of the Polish expression “zloty” is “made of gold”. The zloty is subdivided into grosz (1 zloty = 100 grosz).
• On the banknotes, the effigy of the most important monarchs of Poland is depicted, and almost every banknote bears the picture of the eagle, the national symbol of Poland.
• The Zloty which had been in use since 1950 underwent heavy inflation during the economic crisis that hit the 1980s, but at the beginning of the 1990s the exchange rate became stable again. The zloty has been convertible since 1st January 1990, but in 1995 new Zloty was issued, the value of which was equivalent to 10,000 old Zloty.
• Poland has not yet set a target date for euro adoption because on the one hand the population is against introducing the common currency, and on the other hand because the Polish government declares that currency issuance and setting the monetary policy falls under the competence of the central bank. With the introduction of the Euro, this right would have to be conferred to the European, which however requires two-thirds majority of the votes in the Parliament.

Banknotes currently in circulation

RON | Romanian Lei

• The Romanian “Lei” translates to “lion”. Lei is sub-divided into bani. Since April 1867 (with short periods of disruption), Lei is the national currency of Romania.
• The 10-bani note issued in 1917 was the smallest banknote ever issued (2.74*3.78 cm).
• Within the framework of a monetary reform in 2005, new banknotes were issued, 1 new Lei was equivalent to 10,000 old Lei. Until that time, the largest banknote denomination was 5,000,000 Lei.
• Romania was the first country in Europe to introduce polymer banknotes, as a result of which Romanian banknotes were impossible to tear.
• In 2005, coins were also introduced, until that time only banknotes were in use. However, mainly banknotes are in use even today because the coins are of poor quality, they oxidize quickly, and it is very difficult to distinguish them.

Banknotes currently in circulation

RSD | Serbian Dinar

• The first Serbian Dinars appeared in 1241, then between 1868 and 1918 coins were also made in Serbia. When the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes was established in 1918, Yugoslav Koruna became the national currency, which was replaced by the Yugoslavian Dinar in 1920.
• When Yugoslavia was dissolved in 2003, and Serbia and Montenegro were established, the Serbian Dinar was introduced again, which however, was became the national currency only in Serbia seeing that Montenegro and Kosovo already used the Euro.

Banknotes currently in circulation

RUB | Russian Rouble

• Rouble was first introduced by Tsar Peter I (the Great) in 1704 as part of his monetary reform, and was among the first monarchs in the world who introduced the decimal monetary system.
• The newly introduced silver coins were sub-divided into 100, kopeks made of copper. Silver Roubles could be changed into three higher-denomination gold coins: gold 2-roubles (double rouble), ducats (chervonetz which was worth 2 and a half silver roubles) and double chervonetz (which was worth 5 silver roubles).
• The name “Rouble” stems from the Russian word “rubityh” which means “to chop, to cut off”. The name refers to the fact that earlier pieces of gold and silver cut-off from precious metal were used as a method of payment.
• Throughout the centuries coins were changed several times, and banknotes also appeared with time. The Rouble that is used today was introduced in 1998, and the currency was set to 1 new Rouble per 1,000 old old Rouble.
• When the Rouble was introduced it was equivalent to approximately 0.2 American Dollars, however as a result of the Russian economic crisis in August 1998 it underwent severe depreciation (its value decreased by half in a single month).
• Currently, seven different banknotes are in use (5, 10, 50, 100, 500, 1,000, 5,000).

Banknotes currently in circulation

SEK | Swedish Krona

• Krona has been used as the national currency of Sweden since 1874 (establishment of the Scandinavian Monetary Union). Similarly to Denmark and Norway, the Krone remained the official currency even after the disruption of the union.
• Despite the fact that the Swedish Krona is used in Sweden only, it produces the seventh largest turnover in the world.
• Krona is sub-divided into öre (1 Krona = 100 öre). Issuance of the Swedish banknotes and coins falls under the competence of the central bank of Sweden.
• 5-krona coins are the most expensive to make and they are also the largest in size, though they are not very valuable. 10-krona coins are the smallest but the thickest.
• On one side of the Swedish 1-krona coins, the effigy of the current monarch, while on the other side the Swedish crown or one of the Swedish coat of arms are depicted. The 5-krona coin bears the monarch’s monogram and the 10-krona coin has the portrait of the current monarch. In addition to the above, the royal motto is also inscribed on many of the coins.

Banknotes currently in circulation

SGD | Singapore Dollar

• The Singapore dollar is normally abbreviated with the dollar sign $. It is divided into 100 cents.
• Between 1845 and 1939, Singapore used the Straits dollar. This was replaced by the Malayan dollar and from 1953 the Malaya and British Borneo dollar. On 7 April 1967 Singapore issued its first coins and banknotes. Initially, the Singapore dollar was pegged to the British pound sterling at a rate of 60$=7£. The coins depicted wildlife and other images relating to the island nation.
• The Orchid Series of currency notes issued in the years 1967 to 1976. Each note has an orchid design in the centre of the note’s front, the orchid being the national flower of Singapore. A scene of Singapore is depicted on the back, wich varies across denominations.
• The Bird Series of currency notes is the second set of notes to be issued for circulation in Singapore ( in the years 1976 to 1984 ).
• The Ship Series of currency notes issued in the years 1984 to 1999.
• On 21 February 2013, the Monetary Authority of Singapore announced a new series of coins in denominations 5, 10, 20, 50 cents and 1 dollar, wich went into circulation on 26 June 2013, featuring Singapore’s national icons and landmarks.

Banknotes currently in circulation

THB | Thai Baht

• The strongest currency of Southeast Asia, it is sub-divided into satangs.
• In Thailand, it is very rude to carry banknotes in the back pocket as they bear the portrait of the monarch, who is a highly respected person. In addition to this, it is also highly disrespectful to step on the banknotes or coins.
• The shape, size and weight of the 10-baht coin are similar to those of the 2-euro coin, consequently, many vending machines would also accept this coin, though it is worth about one-tenth of the value of the 2-euro coin.
• Some spreadsheet programs (eg. Microsoft Excel, OpenOffice.org) include a function which converts a number into a Thai text if you enter the name of the currency and the change as well. This is interesting because such functions were originally made for the Thai language only.

Banknotes currently in circulation

TRY | Turkish Lira

• Lira was first introduced in 1844 as the national currency of the Ottoman Empire, it is sub-divided into kurus. Until the end of the 1930s, Arabic language was used on the banknotes and coins.
• Originally, the currency was not the Lira but the kurus (this was in use), and it was sub-divided into para. People started to actually use the Lira was in the 1870s.
• In 1920 Ottoman Lira was replaced by Turkish Lira. While Ottoman Lira consisted of coins exclusively, with the introduction of Turkish Lira banknotes appeared as well.
• From 1970 the Turkish Lira severely weakened as a result of the high rate of inflation.
• Turkish Lira was also recorded in the Guinness Book of Records as the least valuable currency of the world between 1995 and 1996, and also between 1999 and 2004.
• The Lira that is currently in use has been the national currency of Turkey, Northern Cyprus, Northern Iraq and Western Siberia since 1 January 2009. The old Lira was withdrawn from circulation on 31 December 2009, which means that the old and the new Lira were also in use simultaneously for a whole year in 2009.
• The new symbol of the Lira was presented on 1st January 2012. It resembles to an anchor crossed in the middle by two lines at an angle of 20 degrees. The anchor symbolizes the stability of the Lira, while the two lines represent its connections to Europe and Asia.

Banknotes currently in circulation

UAH | Ukrainian Hryvnia

• The word “hryvna” (today it is called hryvnia) originally did not mean money. It comes from the Old-Slavic word “hriva”, which meant “neck” or “mane”. Later it received another meaning: a decorative necklace with medal made of gold, silver, bronze and iron. In this form, it was used already in medieval times, although not as a currency but as a prize or jewellery.
• Today’s Hryvnia became the single national currency of the Ukraine after the monetary reform performed by the National Bank of the Ukraine in September 1996. Hryvnia replaced the Karbovanetz which was used during the Soviet periods. 1 hryvnia was equivalent to 100,000 Karbovanetz, and was equivalent to the German Mark at that time.
• It is important to know that the Hryvnia has significantly lost of its value since its introduction in 1996.
• In 2008, hryvnia became the most beautiful currency of the world.
• On 7 February 2014, the Ukrainian central bank devalued the exchange rate of the Hryvnia by 9 percent against the American Dollar. While in February 2014, 1 American Dollar was worth 8.7080 Hryvnia, the respective figure fell to 14.4759 Hryvnia by November 2014, which meant a devaluation of over 50 percent within 8 month.
• On 5 February 2015, the Ukrainian central bank increased its refinancing rate from 14 to 19.5 percent. In response to the increase in interest rate, the Hryvnia lost 10 percent then 46 percent of its value against the American Dollar by the end of the day.

Banknotes currently in circulation

USD | American Dollar

• The American Dollar has been used as a currency since 1690.
• The average “lifespan” of the coins is 25 years, however, the banknotes wear off more quickly. A 1-dollar banknote may be used for a period of 22 months on average, while the same figure for 5-dollar note is 16 months, for a 10-dollar note it is 18 months, for a 20-dollar note it is 24 months, for a 50-dollar note it is 55 months and for a 100-dollar note it is 89 months on average.
• The American Bank Note Company accepts and exchanges damaged banknotes if half of the banknotes remain undamaged at least.
• According to a research carried out in 2009, 90 percent of the examined banknotes is contaminated with some of the components of cocaine.
• American Dollar notes are made of a mixture of linen and cotton.
• No 2-dollar note has been issued since 2003. Some people say that the 2-dollar notes bring bad luck, but bad luck is relieved if one of the corners of the note is torn.
• Until now, there were only two female portraits printed on American Dollars: the picture of Martha Washington on the 1-dollar coin issued between 1891 and 1896 which was convertible to silver, and the portrait of Pocahontas on the group picture printed on the 20-dollar note in circulation between 1865 and 1869. In 2020, on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the 19th Amendment to the US constitution granting voting rights to women, another female portrait will be illustrated on American banknotes: the portrait of anti-slavery crusader Herriet Tubman.

Banknotes currently in circulation