East Caribbean dollar
Encyclopedia
The East Caribbean dollar (sign
: $; code
: XCD) is the currency
of eight of the nine members of the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States
(the one exception being the British Virgin Islands). It has existed since 1965, being the successor to the British West Indies dollar, and it is normally abbreviated with the dollar sign
$ or, alternatively, EC$ to distinguish it from other dollar
-denominated currencies. The EC$ is subdivided into 100 cent
s. It has been pegged
to the United States dollar
since 1976 and the exchange rate is US$1 = EC$2.70.
, Dominica
, Grenada
, Saint Kitts and Nevis
, Saint Lucia
, and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
. The other two are British
overseas territories: Anguilla
and Montserrat
. These states are all members of the Eastern Caribbean Currency Union
. The only OECS member not using the East Caribbean dollar as their official currency is the British Virgin Islands
. The British Virgin Islands were always problematic for currency purposes due to their proximity to the Danish West Indies
which became the US Virgin Islands in 1917. Officially, the British Virgin Islands used to use sterling
, but in practice the situation was a lot more complicated and involved the circulation of Francs and US dollars. In 1951, the British Virgin Islands adopted the British West Indies dollar which at that time operated in conjunction with the sterling coinage, and in 1961 they changed over officially to the US dollar, no doubt due to the close proximity of the US Virgin Islands. British Guiana
and Barbados
had previously been members of this currency union but withdrew in 1966 and 1972 respectively. Trinidad and Tobago
had been a member of the earlier British West Indies
currency union, but withdrew in 1964.
The combined population of the EC$ area is close to 600,000 (2005 and 2006 census and estimates), which is comparable to Montenegro
or the American capital city of Washington, D.C.
.
Queen Elizabeth II
appears on the banknotes and also on the obverse of the coins. She is the head of state
of all the states and territories using the EC$, except for Dominica. Dominica is nevertheless a member of the Commonwealth of Nations
which recognises Queen Elizabeth II as Head
of the Commonwealth.
, putting the West Indies about two hundred years ahead of the East Indies
in this respect. Nevertheless, silver pieces of eight
continued to form an important portion of the circulating coinage right up until the late 1870s. In 1822, the British government coined 1/4, 1/8, and 1/16 fractional 'Anchor dollars' for use in Mauritius
and the British West Indies
(but not Jamaica
). A few years later copper fractional dollars were coined for Mauritius
, Sierra Leone
, and the British West Indies
.
The first move to introduce British sterling
silver coinage to the colonies came with an imperial order-in-council dated 1825. This move move was inspired by a number of factors. The United Kingdom
was now operating a very successful gold standard in relation to the gold sovereign that was introduced in 1816, and there was a desire to extend this system to the colonies. In addition to this, there was the fact that the supply of Spanish dollars (pieces of eight
) had been cut off as a result of the revolutions in Latin America where most of the Spanish dollars were minted. The last Spanish Dollar
was in fact minted at Potosi
in 1825. There was now a growing desire to have a stable and steady supply of British shillings everywhere the British drum was beating. The 1825 order-in-council was largely a failure because it made sterling silver coinage legal tender at the unrealistic rating in relation to the Spanish dollar
of $1 = 4 shillings and 4 pence. Interestingly it did succeed in Jamaica
, Bermuda
, and British Honduras
because the authorities in those territories set aside the official ratings and used the more realistic rating of $1 = 4 shillings. The reality of the rating between the dollar and the pound was based on the silver content of the Spanish pieces of eight
as compared to the gold content of the British gold sovereign.
A second imperial order-in-council was passed in 1838 with the correct rating of $1 = 4 shillings 2 pence. In the years following the 1838 order-in-council, the British West Indies
territories began to enact local legislation for the purposes of assimilating their monies of account with the British pound sterling. Gold discoveries in Australia in 1851 drove the silver dollar out of the West Indies, but it returned again with the great depreciation in the value of silver that followed with Germany's transition to the gold standard
between 1871 and 1873. In the years immediately following 1873, there was a fear that the British West Indies
might return to a silver standard. As such, legislation was passed in the individual territories to demonetize the silver dollars. Even though the British coinage was also silver, it represented fractions of the gold sovereign and so its value was based on a gold standard.
During this period, and into the nineteenth century, accounts could be kept in either dollars or sterling. Jamaica
, Bermuda
, and the Bahamas preferred to use sterling accounts whereas British Guiana
used dollar accounts. British Guiana
used dollar accounts for the purpose of assisting in the transition from the Dutch guilder
system of currency to the British pound sterling system. In the Eastern Caribbean territories the private sector preferred to use dollar accounts whereas the government preferred to use sterling accounts. In some of the Eastern Caribbean territories, notes were issued by various private banks, denominated in dollars equivalent to 4 shillings 2 pence
. See Antigua dollar
, Barbadian dollar, Dominican dollar
, Grenadan dollar
, Guyanese dollar
, Saint Kitts dollar
, Saint Lucia dollar
, Saint Vincent dollar
and Trinidad and Tobago dollar
.
In 1949, the British government formalized the dollar system of accounts in British Guiana
and the Eastern Caribbean territories by introducing the British West Indies
dollar (BWI$) at the already existing conversion rate of $
4.80 per pound sterling (or $1 = 4 shillings 2 pence). It was one of the many experimental political and economic ventures tested by the British
government to form a uniform system within their British West Indies
territories. The ISO 4217
code of the currency was XBWD. The symbol "BWI$" for frequently used and the currency was known verbally as the "Beewee" (slang for British West Indies) dollar. In 1951, the British Virgin Islands
joined the arrangement, but this led to discontent because that territory was more naturally drawn to the currency of the neighbouring US Virgin Islands. In 1961, the British Virgin Islands
withdrew from the arrangement and adopted the US dollar.
Until 1955, the BWI$ existed only as banknotes in conjunction with sterling fractional coinage. Decimal coins replaced the sterling coins in 1955. These decimal coins were denominated in cents, with each cent being worth one halfpenny in sterling.
In 1958, the West Indies Federation
was established and the BWI$ was its currency. However, although Jamaica
(including the Cayman Islands
and the Turks and Caicos Islands
) was part of the West Indies Federation, it did not adopt the BWI$. Jamaica
, the Cayman Islands
, and the Turks and Caicos Islands
were already long established users of the sterling accounts system of pounds, shillings, and pence.
In 1964 Trinidad and Tobago
withdrew from the currency union (adopting the Trinidad and Tobago dollar
) and soon the "BWI$" dollar lost its regional support.
In 1965, the British West Indies dollar of the now defunct West Indies Federation
was replaced at par by the East Caribbean Dollar
and British Guiana
withdrew from the currency union the following year. Barbados withdrew from the currency union in 1972.
Between 1965 and 1983, the Eastern Caribbean Currency Authority issued the EC$, with banknotes from 1965 and coins from 1981. The EC$ is now issued by the Eastern Caribbean Central Bank
, based in the city of Basseterre
, in Saint Kitts and Nevis. The bank was established by an agreement (the Eastern Caribbean Central Bank Agreement) signed at Port of Spain
on July 5, 1983.
The exchange rate of $4.80 = £1 sterling (equivalent to the old $1 = 4s 2d) continued right into up until 1976 for the new Eastern Caribbean dollar.
For a wider outline of the history of currency in the region see Currencies of the British West Indies
.
.
s in denominations of 1, 5, 20 and 100 dollars. The first issues in the name of the Eastern Caribbean Central Bank in 1985 were of the same denominations, with the addition of 10 dollar notes. The last 1 dollar notes were issued in 1989 and 50 dollar notes were introduced in 1993.
Currency sign
A currency sign is a graphic symbol used as a shorthand for a currency's name, especially in reference to amounts of money. They typically employ the first letter or character of the currency, sometimes with minor changes such as ligatures or overlaid vertical or horizontal bars...
: $; code
ISO 4217
ISO 4217 is a standard published by the International Standards Organization, which delineates currency designators, country codes , and references to minor units in three tables:* Table A.1 – Current currency & funds code list...
: XCD) is the currency
Currency
In economics, currency refers to a generally accepted medium of exchange. These are usually the coins and banknotes of a particular government, which comprise the physical aspects of a nation's money supply...
of eight of the nine members of the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States
Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States
The Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States , created in 1981, is an inter-governmental organisation dedicated to economic harmonisation and integration, protection of human and legal rights, and the encouragement of good governance between countries and dependencies in the Eastern Caribbean...
(the one exception being the British Virgin Islands). It has existed since 1965, being the successor to the British West Indies dollar, and it is normally abbreviated with the dollar sign
Dollar sign
The dollar or peso sign is a symbol primarily used to indicate the various peso and dollar units of currency around the world.- Origin :...
$ or, alternatively, EC$ to distinguish it from other dollar
Dollar
The dollar is the name of the official currency of many countries, including Australia, Belize, Canada, Ecuador, El Salvador, Hong Kong, New Zealand, Singapore, Taiwan, and the United States.-Etymology:...
-denominated currencies. The EC$ is subdivided into 100 cent
Cent (currency)
In many national currencies, the cent is a monetary unit that equals 1⁄100 of the basic monetary unit. Etymologically, the word cent derives from the Latin word "centum" meaning hundred. Cent also refers to a coin which is worth one cent....
s. It has been pegged
Fixed exchange rate
A fixed exchange rate, sometimes called a pegged exchange rate, is a type of exchange rate regime wherein a currency's value is matched to the value of another single currency or to a basket of other currencies, or to another measure of value, such as gold.A fixed exchange rate is usually used to...
to the United States dollar
United States dollar
The United States dollar , also referred to as the American dollar, is the official currency of the United States of America. It is divided into 100 smaller units called cents or pennies....
since 1976 and the exchange rate is US$1 = EC$2.70.
States using the EC$
Six of the states using the EC$ are independent states: Antigua and BarbudaAntigua and Barbuda
Antigua and Barbuda is a twin-island nation lying between the Caribbean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean. It consists of two major inhabited islands, Antigua and Barbuda, and a number of smaller islands...
, Dominica
Dominica
Dominica , officially the Commonwealth of Dominica, is an island nation in the Lesser Antilles region of the Caribbean Sea, south-southeast of Guadeloupe and northwest of Martinique. Its size is and the highest point in the country is Morne Diablotins, which has an elevation of . The Commonwealth...
, Grenada
Grenada
Grenada is an island country and Commonwealth Realm consisting of the island of Grenada and six smaller islands at the southern end of the Grenadines in the southeastern Caribbean Sea...
, Saint Kitts and Nevis
Saint Kitts and Nevis
The Federation of Saint Kitts and Nevis , located in the Leeward Islands, is a federal two-island nation in the West Indies. It is the smallest sovereign state in the Americas, in both area and population....
, Saint Lucia
Saint Lucia
Saint Lucia is an island country in the eastern Caribbean Sea on the boundary with the Atlantic Ocean. Part of the Lesser Antilles, it is located north/northeast of the island of Saint Vincent, northwest of Barbados and south of Martinique. It covers a land area of 620 km2 and has an...
, and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines is an island country in the Lesser Antilles chain, namely in the southern portion of the Windward Islands, which lie at the southern end of the eastern border of the Caribbean Sea where the latter meets the Atlantic Ocean....
. The other two are British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
overseas territories: Anguilla
Anguilla
Anguilla is a British overseas territory and overseas territory of the European Union in the Caribbean. It is one of the most northerly of the Leeward Islands in the Lesser Antilles, lying east of Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands and directly north of Saint Martin...
and Montserrat
Montserrat
Montserrat is a British overseas territory located in the Leeward Islands, part of the chain of islands called the Lesser Antilles in the West Indies. This island measures approximately long and wide, giving of coastline...
. These states are all members of the Eastern Caribbean Currency Union
Eastern Caribbean Currency Union
The Eastern Caribbean Currency Union is a development of the Organization of Eastern Caribbean States, this organization is composed of Antigua and Barbuda, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, and St. Vincent and the Grenadines. It is under the supervision of the Eastern Caribbean...
. The only OECS member not using the East Caribbean dollar as their official currency is the British Virgin Islands
British Virgin Islands
The Virgin Islands, often called the British Virgin Islands , is a British overseas territory and overseas territory of the European Union, located in the Caribbean to the east of Puerto Rico. The islands make up part of the Virgin Islands archipelago, the remaining islands constituting the U.S...
. The British Virgin Islands were always problematic for currency purposes due to their proximity to the Danish West Indies
Danish West Indies
The Danish West Indies or "Danish Antilles", were a colony of Denmark-Norway and later Denmark in the Caribbean. They were sold to the United States in 1916 in the Treaty of the Danish West Indies and became the United States Virgin Islands in 1917...
which became the US Virgin Islands in 1917. Officially, the British Virgin Islands used to use sterling
Pound sterling
The pound sterling , commonly called the pound, is the official currency of the United Kingdom, its Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands, British Antarctic Territory and Tristan da Cunha. It is subdivided into 100 pence...
, but in practice the situation was a lot more complicated and involved the circulation of Francs and US dollars. In 1951, the British Virgin Islands adopted the British West Indies dollar which at that time operated in conjunction with the sterling coinage, and in 1961 they changed over officially to the US dollar, no doubt due to the close proximity of the US Virgin Islands. British Guiana
British Guiana
British Guiana was the name of the British colony on the northern coast of South America, now the independent nation of Guyana.The area was originally settled by the Dutch at the start of the 17th century as the colonies of Essequibo, Demerara, and Berbice...
and Barbados
Barbados
Barbados is an island country in the Lesser Antilles. It is in length and as much as in width, amounting to . It is situated in the western area of the North Atlantic and 100 kilometres east of the Windward Islands and the Caribbean Sea; therein, it is about east of the islands of Saint...
had previously been members of this currency union but withdrew in 1966 and 1972 respectively. Trinidad and Tobago
Trinidad and Tobago
Trinidad and Tobago officially the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago is an archipelagic state in the southern Caribbean, lying just off the coast of northeastern Venezuela and south of Grenada in the Lesser Antilles...
had been a member of the earlier British West Indies
British West Indies
The British West Indies was a term used to describe the islands in and around the Caribbean that were part of the British Empire The term was sometimes used to include British Honduras and British Guiana, even though these territories are not geographically part of the Caribbean...
currency union, but withdrew in 1964.
The combined population of the EC$ area is close to 600,000 (2005 and 2006 census and estimates), which is comparable to Montenegro
Montenegro
Montenegro Montenegrin: Crna Gora Црна Гора , meaning "Black Mountain") is a country located in Southeastern Europe. It has a coast on the Adriatic Sea to the south-west and is bordered by Croatia to the west, Bosnia and Herzegovina to the northwest, Serbia to the northeast and Albania to the...
or the American capital city of Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
.
Queen Elizabeth II
Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom
Elizabeth II is the constitutional monarch of 16 sovereign states known as the Commonwealth realms: the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Jamaica, Barbados, the Bahamas, Grenada, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Belize,...
appears on the banknotes and also on the obverse of the coins. She is the head of state
Head of State
A head of state is the individual that serves as the chief public representative of a monarchy, republic, federation, commonwealth or other kind of state. His or her role generally includes legitimizing the state and exercising the political powers, functions, and duties granted to the head of...
of all the states and territories using the EC$, except for Dominica. Dominica is nevertheless a member of the Commonwealth of Nations
Commonwealth of Nations
The Commonwealth of Nations, normally referred to as the Commonwealth and formerly known as the British Commonwealth, is an intergovernmental organisation of fifty-four independent member states...
which recognises Queen Elizabeth II as Head
Head of the Commonwealth
The Head of the Commonwealth heads the Commonwealth of Nations, an intergovernmental organisation which currently comprises 54 sovereign states. The position is currently occupied by the individual who serves as monarch of each of the Commonwealth realms, but has no day-to-day involvement in the...
of the Commonwealth.
History
Queen Anne's proclamation of 1704 introduced the gold standard to the British West IndiesBritish West Indies
The British West Indies was a term used to describe the islands in and around the Caribbean that were part of the British Empire The term was sometimes used to include British Honduras and British Guiana, even though these territories are not geographically part of the Caribbean...
, putting the West Indies about two hundred years ahead of the East Indies
East Indies
East Indies is a term used by Europeans from the 16th century onwards to identify what is now known as Indian subcontinent or South Asia, Southeastern Asia, and the islands of Oceania, including the Malay Archipelago and the Philippines...
in this respect. Nevertheless, silver pieces of eight
Pieces of Eight
Pieces of Eight is the eighth studio album and second concept album by Styx, released September 1, 1978.The album was the band's follow-up to their Triple Platinum selling The Grand Illusion album....
continued to form an important portion of the circulating coinage right up until the late 1870s. In 1822, the British government coined 1/4, 1/8, and 1/16 fractional 'Anchor dollars' for use in Mauritius
Mauritius
Mauritius , officially the Republic of Mauritius is an island nation off the southeast coast of the African continent in the southwest Indian Ocean, about east of Madagascar...
and the British West Indies
British West Indies
The British West Indies was a term used to describe the islands in and around the Caribbean that were part of the British Empire The term was sometimes used to include British Honduras and British Guiana, even though these territories are not geographically part of the Caribbean...
(but not Jamaica
Jamaica
Jamaica is an island nation of the Greater Antilles, in length, up to in width and 10,990 square kilometres in area. It is situated in the Caribbean Sea, about south of Cuba, and west of Hispaniola, the island harbouring the nation-states Haiti and the Dominican Republic...
). A few years later copper fractional dollars were coined for Mauritius
Mauritius
Mauritius , officially the Republic of Mauritius is an island nation off the southeast coast of the African continent in the southwest Indian Ocean, about east of Madagascar...
, Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone , officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Guinea to the north and east, Liberia to the southeast, and the Atlantic Ocean to the west and southwest. Sierra Leone covers a total area of and has an estimated population between 5.4 and 6.4...
, and the British West Indies
British West Indies
The British West Indies was a term used to describe the islands in and around the Caribbean that were part of the British Empire The term was sometimes used to include British Honduras and British Guiana, even though these territories are not geographically part of the Caribbean...
.
The first move to introduce British sterling
Pound sterling
The pound sterling , commonly called the pound, is the official currency of the United Kingdom, its Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands, British Antarctic Territory and Tristan da Cunha. It is subdivided into 100 pence...
silver coinage to the colonies came with an imperial order-in-council dated 1825. This move move was inspired by a number of factors. The United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
was now operating a very successful gold standard in relation to the gold sovereign that was introduced in 1816, and there was a desire to extend this system to the colonies. In addition to this, there was the fact that the supply of Spanish dollars (pieces of eight
Pieces of Eight
Pieces of Eight is the eighth studio album and second concept album by Styx, released September 1, 1978.The album was the band's follow-up to their Triple Platinum selling The Grand Illusion album....
) had been cut off as a result of the revolutions in Latin America where most of the Spanish dollars were minted. The last Spanish Dollar
Spanish dollar
The Spanish dollar is a silver coin, of approximately 38 mm diameter, worth eight reales, that was minted in the Spanish Empire after a Spanish currency reform in 1497. Its purpose was to correspond to the German thaler...
was in fact minted at Potosi
Potosí
Potosí is a city and the capital of the department of Potosí in Bolivia. It is one of the highest cities in the world by elevation at a nominal . and it was the location of the Spanish colonial mint, now the National Mint of Bolivia...
in 1825. There was now a growing desire to have a stable and steady supply of British shillings everywhere the British drum was beating. The 1825 order-in-council was largely a failure because it made sterling silver coinage legal tender at the unrealistic rating in relation to the Spanish dollar
Spanish dollar
The Spanish dollar is a silver coin, of approximately 38 mm diameter, worth eight reales, that was minted in the Spanish Empire after a Spanish currency reform in 1497. Its purpose was to correspond to the German thaler...
of $1 = 4 shillings and 4 pence. Interestingly it did succeed in Jamaica
Jamaica
Jamaica is an island nation of the Greater Antilles, in length, up to in width and 10,990 square kilometres in area. It is situated in the Caribbean Sea, about south of Cuba, and west of Hispaniola, the island harbouring the nation-states Haiti and the Dominican Republic...
, Bermuda
Bermuda
Bermuda is a British overseas territory in the North Atlantic Ocean. Located off the east coast of the United States, its nearest landmass is Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, about to the west-northwest. It is about south of Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, and northeast of Miami, Florida...
, and British Honduras
British Honduras
British Honduras was a British colony that is now the independent nation of Belize.First colonised by Spaniards in the 17th century, the territory on the east coast of Central America, south of Mexico, became a British crown colony from 1862 until 1964, when it became self-governing. Belize became...
because the authorities in those territories set aside the official ratings and used the more realistic rating of $1 = 4 shillings. The reality of the rating between the dollar and the pound was based on the silver content of the Spanish pieces of eight
Pieces of Eight
Pieces of Eight is the eighth studio album and second concept album by Styx, released September 1, 1978.The album was the band's follow-up to their Triple Platinum selling The Grand Illusion album....
as compared to the gold content of the British gold sovereign.
A second imperial order-in-council was passed in 1838 with the correct rating of $1 = 4 shillings 2 pence. In the years following the 1838 order-in-council, the British West Indies
British West Indies
The British West Indies was a term used to describe the islands in and around the Caribbean that were part of the British Empire The term was sometimes used to include British Honduras and British Guiana, even though these territories are not geographically part of the Caribbean...
territories began to enact local legislation for the purposes of assimilating their monies of account with the British pound sterling. Gold discoveries in Australia in 1851 drove the silver dollar out of the West Indies, but it returned again with the great depreciation in the value of silver that followed with Germany's transition to the gold standard
Gold standard
The gold standard is a monetary system in which the standard economic unit of account is a fixed mass of gold. There are distinct kinds of gold standard...
between 1871 and 1873. In the years immediately following 1873, there was a fear that the British West Indies
British West Indies
The British West Indies was a term used to describe the islands in and around the Caribbean that were part of the British Empire The term was sometimes used to include British Honduras and British Guiana, even though these territories are not geographically part of the Caribbean...
might return to a silver standard. As such, legislation was passed in the individual territories to demonetize the silver dollars. Even though the British coinage was also silver, it represented fractions of the gold sovereign and so its value was based on a gold standard.
During this period, and into the nineteenth century, accounts could be kept in either dollars or sterling. Jamaica
Jamaica
Jamaica is an island nation of the Greater Antilles, in length, up to in width and 10,990 square kilometres in area. It is situated in the Caribbean Sea, about south of Cuba, and west of Hispaniola, the island harbouring the nation-states Haiti and the Dominican Republic...
, Bermuda
Bermuda
Bermuda is a British overseas territory in the North Atlantic Ocean. Located off the east coast of the United States, its nearest landmass is Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, about to the west-northwest. It is about south of Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, and northeast of Miami, Florida...
, and the Bahamas preferred to use sterling accounts whereas British Guiana
British Guiana
British Guiana was the name of the British colony on the northern coast of South America, now the independent nation of Guyana.The area was originally settled by the Dutch at the start of the 17th century as the colonies of Essequibo, Demerara, and Berbice...
used dollar accounts. British Guiana
British Guiana
British Guiana was the name of the British colony on the northern coast of South America, now the independent nation of Guyana.The area was originally settled by the Dutch at the start of the 17th century as the colonies of Essequibo, Demerara, and Berbice...
used dollar accounts for the purpose of assisting in the transition from the Dutch guilder
Guilder
Guilder is the English translation of the Dutch gulden — from Old Dutch for 'golden'. The guilder originated as a gold coin but has been a common name for a silver or base metal coin for some centuries...
system of currency to the British pound sterling system. In the Eastern Caribbean territories the private sector preferred to use dollar accounts whereas the government preferred to use sterling accounts. In some of the Eastern Caribbean territories, notes were issued by various private banks, denominated in dollars equivalent to 4 shillings 2 pence
Penny
A penny is a coin or a type of currency used in several English-speaking countries. It is often the smallest denomination within a currency system.-Etymology:...
. See Antigua dollar
Antigua dollar
-History:The history of currency in the British colony of Antigua closely follows that of the British Eastern Caribbean territories in general and it should not be considered in isolation...
, Barbadian dollar, Dominican dollar
Dominican dollar
The history of currency in the British colony of Dominica closely follows that of the British Eastern Caribbean territories in general. Even though Queen Anne's proclamation of 1704 brought the gold standard to the West Indies, silver pieces of eight continued to form a major portion of the...
, Grenadan dollar
Grenadan dollar
The history of currency in the British colony of Grenada closely follows that of the British Eastern Caribbean territories in general. Even though Queen Anne's proclamation of 1704 brought the gold standard to the West Indies, silver pieces of eight continued to form a major portion of the...
, Guyanese dollar
Guyanese dollar
The Guyanese dollar has been the unit of account in Guyana since 29 January 1839. Originally it was intended as a transitionary unit to facilitate the changeover from the Dutch guilder system of currency to the British pound sterling system...
, Saint Kitts dollar
Saint Kitts dollar
The history of currency in the British colony of St. Kitts closely follows that of the British Eastern Caribbean territories in general. Even though Queen Anne's proclamation of 1704 brought the gold standard to the West Indies, silver pieces of eight continued to form a major portion of the...
, Saint Lucia dollar
Saint Lucia dollar
The history of currency in the British colony of Saint Lucia closely follows that of the British Eastern Caribbean territories in general. Even though Queen Anne's proclamation of 1704 brought the gold standard to the West Indies, silver pieces of eight continued to form a major portion of the...
, Saint Vincent dollar
Saint Vincent dollar
The history of currency in the British colony of Saint Vincent closely follows that of the British Eastern Caribbean territories in general. As such, it should not be considered in isolation...
and Trinidad and Tobago dollar
Trinidad and Tobago dollar
The dollar is the currency of Trinidad and Tobago. It is normally abbreviated with the dollar sign $, or alternatively TT$ to distinguish it from other dollar-denominated currencies. It is subdivided into 100 cents...
.
In 1949, the British government formalized the dollar system of accounts in British Guiana
British Guiana
British Guiana was the name of the British colony on the northern coast of South America, now the independent nation of Guyana.The area was originally settled by the Dutch at the start of the 17th century as the colonies of Essequibo, Demerara, and Berbice...
and the Eastern Caribbean territories by introducing the British West Indies
British West Indies
The British West Indies was a term used to describe the islands in and around the Caribbean that were part of the British Empire The term was sometimes used to include British Honduras and British Guiana, even though these territories are not geographically part of the Caribbean...
dollar (BWI$) at the already existing conversion rate of $
Dollar
The dollar is the name of the official currency of many countries, including Australia, Belize, Canada, Ecuador, El Salvador, Hong Kong, New Zealand, Singapore, Taiwan, and the United States.-Etymology:...
4.80 per pound sterling (or $1 = 4 shillings 2 pence). It was one of the many experimental political and economic ventures tested by the British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
government to form a uniform system within their British West Indies
British West Indies
The British West Indies was a term used to describe the islands in and around the Caribbean that were part of the British Empire The term was sometimes used to include British Honduras and British Guiana, even though these territories are not geographically part of the Caribbean...
territories. The ISO 4217
ISO 4217
ISO 4217 is a standard published by the International Standards Organization, which delineates currency designators, country codes , and references to minor units in three tables:* Table A.1 – Current currency & funds code list...
code of the currency was XBWD. The symbol "BWI$" for frequently used and the currency was known verbally as the "Beewee" (slang for British West Indies) dollar. In 1951, the British Virgin Islands
British Virgin Islands
The Virgin Islands, often called the British Virgin Islands , is a British overseas territory and overseas territory of the European Union, located in the Caribbean to the east of Puerto Rico. The islands make up part of the Virgin Islands archipelago, the remaining islands constituting the U.S...
joined the arrangement, but this led to discontent because that territory was more naturally drawn to the currency of the neighbouring US Virgin Islands. In 1961, the British Virgin Islands
British Virgin Islands
The Virgin Islands, often called the British Virgin Islands , is a British overseas territory and overseas territory of the European Union, located in the Caribbean to the east of Puerto Rico. The islands make up part of the Virgin Islands archipelago, the remaining islands constituting the U.S...
withdrew from the arrangement and adopted the US dollar.
Until 1955, the BWI$ existed only as banknotes in conjunction with sterling fractional coinage. Decimal coins replaced the sterling coins in 1955. These decimal coins were denominated in cents, with each cent being worth one halfpenny in sterling.
In 1958, the West Indies Federation
West Indies Federation
The West Indies Federation, also known as the Federation of the West Indies, was a short-lived Caribbean federation that existed from January 3, 1958, to May 31, 1962. It consisted of several Caribbean colonies of the United Kingdom...
was established and the BWI$ was its currency. However, although Jamaica
Jamaica
Jamaica is an island nation of the Greater Antilles, in length, up to in width and 10,990 square kilometres in area. It is situated in the Caribbean Sea, about south of Cuba, and west of Hispaniola, the island harbouring the nation-states Haiti and the Dominican Republic...
(including the Cayman Islands
Cayman Islands
The Cayman Islands is a British Overseas Territory and overseas territory of the European Union located in the western Caribbean Sea. The territory comprises the three islands of Grand Cayman, Cayman Brac, and Little Cayman, located south of Cuba and northwest of Jamaica...
and the Turks and Caicos Islands
Turks and Caicos Islands
The Turks and Caicos Islands are a British Overseas Territory and overseas territory of the European Union consisting of two groups of tropical islands in the Caribbean, the larger Caicos Islands and the smaller Turks Islands, known for tourism and as an offshore financial centre.The Turks and...
) was part of the West Indies Federation, it did not adopt the BWI$. Jamaica
Jamaica
Jamaica is an island nation of the Greater Antilles, in length, up to in width and 10,990 square kilometres in area. It is situated in the Caribbean Sea, about south of Cuba, and west of Hispaniola, the island harbouring the nation-states Haiti and the Dominican Republic...
, the Cayman Islands
Cayman Islands
The Cayman Islands is a British Overseas Territory and overseas territory of the European Union located in the western Caribbean Sea. The territory comprises the three islands of Grand Cayman, Cayman Brac, and Little Cayman, located south of Cuba and northwest of Jamaica...
, and the Turks and Caicos Islands
Turks and Caicos Islands
The Turks and Caicos Islands are a British Overseas Territory and overseas territory of the European Union consisting of two groups of tropical islands in the Caribbean, the larger Caicos Islands and the smaller Turks Islands, known for tourism and as an offshore financial centre.The Turks and...
were already long established users of the sterling accounts system of pounds, shillings, and pence.
In 1964 Trinidad and Tobago
Trinidad and Tobago
Trinidad and Tobago officially the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago is an archipelagic state in the southern Caribbean, lying just off the coast of northeastern Venezuela and south of Grenada in the Lesser Antilles...
withdrew from the currency union (adopting the Trinidad and Tobago dollar
Trinidad and Tobago dollar
The dollar is the currency of Trinidad and Tobago. It is normally abbreviated with the dollar sign $, or alternatively TT$ to distinguish it from other dollar-denominated currencies. It is subdivided into 100 cents...
) and soon the "BWI$" dollar lost its regional support.
In 1965, the British West Indies dollar of the now defunct West Indies Federation
West Indies Federation
The West Indies Federation, also known as the Federation of the West Indies, was a short-lived Caribbean federation that existed from January 3, 1958, to May 31, 1962. It consisted of several Caribbean colonies of the United Kingdom...
was replaced at par by the East Caribbean Dollar
East Caribbean dollar
The East Caribbean dollar is the currency of eight of the nine members of the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States...
and British Guiana
British Guiana
British Guiana was the name of the British colony on the northern coast of South America, now the independent nation of Guyana.The area was originally settled by the Dutch at the start of the 17th century as the colonies of Essequibo, Demerara, and Berbice...
withdrew from the currency union the following year. Barbados withdrew from the currency union in 1972.
Between 1965 and 1983, the Eastern Caribbean Currency Authority issued the EC$, with banknotes from 1965 and coins from 1981. The EC$ is now issued by the Eastern Caribbean Central Bank
Eastern Caribbean Central Bank
The Eastern Caribbean Central Bank is the monetary authority of a group of six independent Caribbean nations namely:* Antigua and Barbuda,* Grenada,* Saint Kitts and Nevis,* Commonwealth of Dominica,* Saint Lucia,* Saint Vincent and the Grenadines,...
, based in the city of Basseterre
Basseterre
Basseterre , estimated population 15,500 in 2000, is the capital of the Federation of Saint Kitts and Nevis in the West Indies. Geographically, the Basseterre port is located at , on the south western coast of Saint Kitts Island, and it is one of the chief commercial depots of the Leeward Islands...
, in Saint Kitts and Nevis. The bank was established by an agreement (the Eastern Caribbean Central Bank Agreement) signed at Port of Spain
Port of Spain
Port of Spain, also written as Port-of-Spain, is the capital of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago and the country's third-largest municipality, after San Fernando and Chaguanas. The city has a municipal population of 49,031 , a metropolitan population of 128,026 and a transient daily population...
on July 5, 1983.
The exchange rate of $4.80 = £1 sterling (equivalent to the old $1 = 4s 2d) continued right into up until 1976 for the new Eastern Caribbean dollar.
For a wider outline of the history of currency in the region see Currencies of the British West Indies
Currencies of the British West Indies
This article examines the monetary systems that prevailed in the region known as the British West Indies in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. The territories covered in this article include British Guiana on the South American mainland, British Honduras in Central America, Bermuda, the...
.
Coins
Until 1981, the coins of the BWI$ circulated. In 1981, a new series of coins was introduced in denominations of 1, 2, 5, 10 and 25 cents and 1 dollar. The round, aluminium bronze dollar coin was replaced in 1989 with a decagonal, cupro-nickel type. Higher denominations exist, but these were issued only as medal-coinsMedal-coins
Non-circulating legal tender is a coin-like object that cannot be used or is not used for payments, so they are not money. They are minted for sale to collectors only. They are also called pseudo coin or medal-coin. Advanced collectors typically try to avoid buying NCLT, so that buyers are often...
.
| 2002 Series http://www.eccb-centralbank.org/Currency/cur_newcoins.asp | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Value | Technical parameters | Description | Date of first minting | ||||
| Diameter | Mass | Composition | Edge | Obverse | Reverse | ||
| 1 cent | 18.42 mm | 1.03 g | Aluminium Aluminium Aluminium or aluminum is a silvery white member of the boron group of chemical elements. It has the symbol Al, and its atomic number is 13. It is not soluble in water under normal circumstances.... |
Plain | Elizabeth II Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom Elizabeth II is the constitutional monarch of 16 sovereign states known as the Commonwealth realms: the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Jamaica, Barbados, the Bahamas, Grenada, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Belize,... |
Value, year of minting, "East Caribbean States" | 2002 |
| 2 cents | 21.46 mm | 1.42 g | |||||
| 5 cents | 23.11 mm | 1.74 g | |||||
| 10 cents | 18.06 mm | 2.59 g | Cupronickel Cupronickel Cupronickel or copper-nickel or "cupernickel" is an alloy of copper that contains nickel and strengthening elements, such as iron and manganese. Cupronickel is highly resistant to corrosion in seawater, because its electrode potential is adjusted to be neutral with regard to seawater... |
Ribbed | Value, year of minting, "East Caribbean States", ship | ||
| 25 cents | 23.98 mm | 6.48 g | |||||
| 1 dollar | 26.5 mm | 7.98 g | Alternate smooth and ribbed | ||||
Banknotes
In 1965, the Eastern Caribbean Currency Authority issued banknoteBanknote
A banknote is a kind of negotiable instrument, a promissory note made by a bank payable to the bearer on demand, used as money, and in many jurisdictions is legal tender. In addition to coins, banknotes make up the cash or bearer forms of all modern fiat money...
s in denominations of 1, 5, 20 and 100 dollars. The first issues in the name of the Eastern Caribbean Central Bank in 1985 were of the same denominations, with the addition of 10 dollar notes. The last 1 dollar notes were issued in 1989 and 50 dollar notes were introduced in 1993.
See also
- Central banks and currencies of the CaribbeanCentral banks and currencies of the CaribbeanThis is a list of the central banks and currencies of the Caribbean.There are a number of currencies serving multiple territories; the most widespread are the East Caribbean dollar , the United States dollar and the euro ....
- Currency UnionCurrency unionA currency union is where two or more states share the same currency, though without there necessarily having any further integration such as an Economic and Monetary Union, which has in addition a customs union and a single market.There are three types of currency unions:#Informal - unilateral...
- EuroEuroThe euro is the official currency of the eurozone: 17 of the 27 member states of the European Union. It is also the currency used by the Institutions of the European Union. The eurozone consists of Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg,...
- Amero
- KhaleejiKhaleeji (currency)The Khaleeji was a proposed name for the common currency of the member states of the GCC or Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf, except for Oman, and the U.A.E.. The term 'Khaleeji' is Arabic for "of the Gulf", and is traditionally associated with the Arab states of the Persian Gulf...
- ACU
- EcoEco (currency)The Eco is the proposed name for the common currency that the West African Monetary Zone plans to introduce in the framework of ECOWAS. Originally the introduction of the currency was planned for December 1, 2009, however this date was revised to 2015. The original five member states are the...
- CARICOM
- SUCRE (currency)