The pound sign £ is the symbol for the pound sterling – the currency of the United Kingdom and previously of Great Britain and of the Kingdom of England. The same symbol is used for other currencies called pound, such as the Gibraltar, Egyptian, Manx and Syrian pounds. The sign may be drawn with one or two bars (this is a font design choice) but the Bank of England has used the one-bar style exclusively since 1975.
The Australian two-dollar note was introduced in 1966 due to decimalization, to replace the £1 note which had similar green coloration. The note was issued from its introduction in 1966 until its replacement by the two dollar coin in 1988.
TheUnited States dollar (symbol: $; code: USD; also abbreviated US$ or U.S. Dollar, to distinguish it from other dollar-denominated currencies; referred to as the dollar, U.S. dollar, American dollar, or colloquially buck) is the official currency of the United States and several other countries. The Coinage Act of 1792 introduced the U.S. dollar at par with the Spanish silver dollar, divided it into 100 cents, and authorized the minting of coins denominated in dollars and cents. U.S. banknotes are issued in the form of Federal Reserve Notes, popularly called greenbacks due to their predominantly green color.
The monetary policy of the United States is conducted by the Federal Reserve System, which acts as the nation’s central bank.
The euro (symbol: €; code: EUR) is the official currency of 19 of the 27 member states of the European Union. This group of states is known as the euro zone or, officially, the euro area, and includes about 343 million citizens as of 2019. The euro is divided into 100 cents.
The currency is also used officially by the institutions of the European Union, by four European microstates that are not EU members, the British Overseas Territory of Akrotiri and Dhekelia, as well as unilaterally by Montenegro and Kosovo. Outside Europe, a number of special territories of EU members also use the euro as their currency. Additionally, over 200 million people worldwide use currencies pegged to the euro.
The New Currency Act of 1871 introduced Japan’s modern currency system, with the yen defined as 1.5 g (0.048 troy ounces) of gold, or 24.26 g (0.780 troy ounces) of silver, and divided decimally into 100 sen or 1,000 rin. The yen replaced the previous Tokugawa coinage as well as the various hansatsu paper currencies issued by feudal han (fiefs). The Bank of Japan was founded in 1882 and given a monopoly on controlling the money supply.
China has the world’s second largest economy and Chinese money plays an increasingly important role in global financial transactions. That said, there’s still a great deal of confusion when it comes to Chinese currency. Even the question of what to call Chinese money can be puzzling.
Read on to discover the different between Chinese renminbi (RMB) and yuan (CNY) and learn to talk about China’s currency in both English and Chinese.
The Russian ruble or rouble (Russian: рубль rublʹ; symbol: ₽, руб; code: RUB) is the official currency of the Russian Federation. The ruble is subdivided into 100 kopeks (sometimes written as kopecks or copecks; Russian: копе́йка kopeyka, plural: копе́йки kopeyki). The first Russian ruble (code: RUR) replaced the Soviet ruble (code: SUR) in September 1993 at parity or 1 SUR = 1 RUR. In 1998, preceding the financial crisis, the current ruble was redenominated with the new code “RUB” and was exchanged at the rate of 1 RUB = 1,000 RUR.
The Indian rupee (symbol: ₹; code: INR) is the official currency of India. The rupee is subdivided into 100 paise (singular: paisa), though as of 2019, coins of denomination of 1 rupee is the lowest value in use. The issuance of the currency is controlled by the Reserve Bank of India. The Reserve Bank manages currency in India and derives its role in currency management on the basis of the Reserve Bank of India Act, 1934.
