Search results
Results from the WOW.Com Content Network
The pound (Afrikaans: pond; symbol £, £SA [1] for distinction) was the currency of the Union of South Africa from the formation of the country as a British Dominion in 1910. It was replaced by the rand in 1961 when South Africa decimalised. In 1825, an imperial order-in-council made sterling coinage legal tender in all the British colonies.
It replaced the South African pound as legal tender, at the rate of 2 rand to 1 pound, or 10 shillings to the rand. The government introduced a mascot, Decimal Dan, "the rand-cent man" (known in Afrikaans as Daan Desimaal). [4] This was accompanied by a radio jingle to inform the public about the new currency. [5]
In 1923, South Africa began to issue its own coins, adopting coins that were identical in size and value to those used in Great Britain: 12 pence (12d) = 1 shilling (1s), and 20s = 1 pound (£1). On 14 February 1961, the Union of South Africa adopted a decimal currency, replacing the pound with the Rand.
AOL latest headlines, entertainment, sports, articles for business, health and world news.
Currency quotations use the abbreviations for currencies that are prescribed by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) in standard ISO 4217.The major currencies and their designation in the foreign exchange market are the US dollar (USD), Euro (EUR), Japanese yen (JPY), British pound (GBP), Australian dollar (AUD), Canadian dollar (CAD), and the Swiss franc (CHF).
The British pound sterling holds a smaller but still notable portion of global reserves, typically around 4% to 5%. Several other currencies, such as the Swiss franc (CHF), Canadian dollar (CAD), and Australian dollar (AUD), also make up a small but significant portion of foreign reserves. However, none of these currencies surpass the USD, EUR ...
In addition, two bullion coins with denominations of 1 rand and 2 rand were issued, replacing the gold half-pound and pound coins introduced in 1952. Both the pound and the rand gold coins matched the specifications of the British half-sovereign and sovereign (minted, among others, at the Pretoria branch mint until 1932), including the gold ...
Instead, in August 2006, the first dollar was redenominated to the second dollar at the rate of 1000 first dollars to 1 second dollar (1000:1). At the same time, the currency was devalued against the US dollar, from 101000 first dollars (101 once revalued) to 250 second dollars, a decrease of about 60% (see exchange rate history table below).