Kuwaiti dinar
Template:Short description Template:Redirect Template:Use dmy dates Template:Infobox currency
The Kuwaiti dinar (Template:Langx, code: KWD) is the currency of Kuwait. It is sub-divided into 1,000 fulūs.<ref name="auto">Template:Cite web</ref>
Template:As of, the Kuwaiti dinar is the currency with the highest value per base unit, with KD 1 equalling US$3.26,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> ahead of the Bahraini dinar with BD 1 equalling US$2.65 and Omani rial at US$2.60.
History
Template:See also The dinar was introduced in 1961 to replace the Gulf rupee, equal to the Indian rupee. It was initially equivalent to £1 sterling.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> As the rupee was fixed at 1s.6d., that resulted in a conversion rate of Rs. Template:Frac to KD 1.<ref name=kt>Template:Cite news</ref>
When Iraq invaded Kuwait in 1990, the Iraqi dinar replaced the Kuwaiti dinar as the currency and large quantities of banknotes were stolen by the invading forces.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> After liberation, the Kuwaiti dinar was restored as the country's currency and a new series of banknotes was introduced to replace the previous notes, including the ones that were stolen.<ref name=kt />
Coins
The coins in the following table were introduced in 1961. The design of all coins is similar and has not changed since they were first minted. On the obverse is a boom ship, with year of minting in both Islamic and Common Era in Arabic. The reverse contains the value in Arabic within a central circle with Template:Script/Arabic (Arabic for ’’The Kuwait’’) above and KUWAIT in English below.
Unlike many other Middle Eastern currencies, Kuwait has a coin worth 0.02 of its main currency unit rather than 0.025 or 0.25 – though this latter does exist as a banknote (see below).
| Current issue (1961) | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Image | Value | Diameter (mm) |
Thickness (mm) |
Mass (g) |
Composition | Edge | Obverse | Reverse | Issue | Withdrawn | ||
| Obverse | Reverse | |||||||||||
|
|
1 fils | 17 | 1.2 | 2 | Nickel-brass | Smooth | Boum dhow; Year of issue in Hijri and Gregorian |
Lettering: Kuwait in English and Arabic; denomination in Arabic | 1961–1988 | 2014 | |
|
File:5 Kuwaitian fils in 2012 Reverse.jpg | 5 fils | 19.5 | 2.5 | 1961–2011 | Current | ||||||
| 1.45 | 2.55 | Brass-plated steel | 2012 | |||||||||
| File:10 Kuwaitian fils in 2012 Obverse.jpg | File:10 Kuwaitian fils in 2012 Reverse.jpg | 10 fils | 21 | 1.5 | 3.75 | Nickel-brass | 1961–2011 | |||||
| 4 | Brass-plated steel | 2012 | ||||||||||
| File:20 Kuwaitian fils in 2015 Obverse.jpg | File:20 Kuwaitian fils in 2015 Reverse.jpg | 20 fils | 20 | 1.36 | 3 | Cupronickel | Reeded | 1961–2011 | ||||
| Stainless steel | 2012 | |||||||||||
| File:50 Kuwaitian fils in 2012 Obverse.jpg | File:50 Kuwaitian fils in 2012 Reverse.jpg | 50 fils | 23 | 1.54 | 4.5 | Cupronickel | 1961–2011 | |||||
| 1.7 | Stainless steel | 2012 | ||||||||||
| File:100 Kuwaitian fils in 2012 Obverse.jpg | File:100 Kuwaitian fils in 2012 Reverse.jpg | 100 fils | 26 | 1.71 | 6.5 | Cupronickel | 1961–2011 | |||||
| 1.8 | 6.7 | Stainless steel | 2012 | |||||||||
Banknotes
Six series of the Kuwaiti dinar banknote have been printed.
First series
The first series was issued following the pronouncement of the Kuwaiti Currency Law in 1960, which established the Kuwaiti Currency Board. This series was in circulation from 1 April 1961 to 1 February 1982 and consisted of denominations of KD Template:Frac, KD Template:Frac, KD 1, KD 5 and KD 10.
Second series
After the creation of the Central Bank of Kuwait in 1969 as a replacement to the Kuwaiti Currency Board, new KD Template:Frac, KD Template:Frac and KD 10 notes were issued from 17 November 1970, followed by the new KD 1 and KD 5 notes of the second series on 20 April 1971.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> This second series was withdrawn on 1 February 1982.
Third series
The third series was issued on 20 February 1980, after the accession to the throne of late Emir Jaber Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah, in denominations of KD Template:Frac, KD Template:Frac, 1, 5 and KD 10. A KD 20 banknote was introduced later on 9 February 1986. As a result of the state of emergency after the Invasion of Kuwait, this series was ruled invalid with effect from 30 September 1991. Significant quantities of these notes were stolen by Iraqi forces and some had appeared on the international numismatic market. The "Standard Catalog of World Paper Money" (A. Pick, Krause Publications) lists notes with the following serial number prefix denominators as being among those stolen:
| Denomination | Prefix Denominators |
|---|---|
| KD Template:Frac (د.كTemplate:Sfrac) | 54–86 |
| KD Template:Frac (د.كTemplate:Sfrac) | 30–37 |
| KD 1 (١د.ك) | 47–53 |
| KD 5 (٥د.ك) | 18–20 |
| KD 10 (١٠د.ك) | 70–87 |
| KD 20 (٢٠د.ك) | 9–13 |
Fourth series
After the liberation, a fourth series was issued on 24 March 1991 with the aims of replacing the previous withdrawn series as quickly as possible and guaranteeing the country's swift economic recovery. This fourth series was legal tender until 16 February 1995. Denominations were KD Template:Frac, KD Template:Frac, KD 1, KD 5, KD 10 and KD 20.
Fifth series
The fifth series of Kuwaiti banknotes was in use from 3 April 1994 and included high-tech security measures which have now become standard for banknotes. It was withdrawn on 1 October 2015. Denominations were as in the fourth series.
Sixth series
Central Bank of Kuwait brought the sixth series of Kuwaiti banknotes into circulation on 29 June 2014.<ref name=":0">Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="auto"/><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Some of the notes are coarse so that the blind can identify them by touch.<ref name=":0" />
Commemorative issues
In both 1993 and 2001, the Central Bank of Kuwait issued commemorative KD 1 polymer banknotes to celebrate its Liberation from Iraq. The first commemorative note, dated 26 February 1993, was issued to celebrate the second anniversary of its Liberation. The front features the map of the State of Kuwait, the emblem of Kuwait and on the left and right side of the note is the list of nations that assisted in its Liberation, in both English and Arabic.<ref>Kuwait 1 dinar commemorative banknote (1993) Template:Webarchive Banknote Museum (banknote.ws). Retrieved on 11 February 2013.</ref> The second commemorative note, dated 26 February 2001, was issued to celebrate the tenth anniversary of its Liberation. One feature from the note is an optically variable device (OVD) patch that shows a fingerprint, a reference to the victims of the invasion and occupation of Kuwait.<ref>Kuwait 1 dinar commemorative banknote (2001) Template:Webarchive Banknote Museum (banknote.ws). Retrieved on 11 February 2013.</ref> Even though they were denominated as KD 1, both of the commemorative notes state that they were not legal tender.
From 18 March 1975 to 4 January 2003, the dinar was pegged to a weighted currency basket. From 5 January 2003 until 20 May 2007, the pegging was switched to US$1 = KD 0.29963 with margins of ±3.5%.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The central rate translates to approximately KD 1 = US$3.53.
From 16 June 2007, the Kuwaiti dinar was re-pegged to a basket of currencies,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> and was worth about $3.28 as of December 2016. It is the world's highest-valued currency unit.<ref name="auto"/>
See also
References
Template:Reflist Template:Refbegin
- This article draws heavily on the corresponding article in the German Wikipedia, retrieved 2 March 2005.Template:Circular reference
External links
- Images and description of banknotes (New Central Bank of Kuwait website). Template:Webarchive.
- The banknotes of Kuwait Template:In lang
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