Qatari riyal

Qatari riyal
ريال قطري (Arabic)
ISO 4217
Code QAR
Denominations
Subunit
1100 dirham
Symbol QR or ر.ق
Banknotes 1, 5, 10, 50, 100, 500 riyals
Coins 1, 5, 10, 25, 50 dirhams
Demographics
User(s) Qatar Qatar
Issuance
Central bank Qatar Central Bank
Website www.qcb.gov.qa
Valuation
Inflation -2.8%
Source The World Factbook, 2011 est.
Pegged with U.S. dollar (USD)
$1 USD = 3.64 QR

The riyal is the currency of the State of Qatar. It is divided into 100 dirhams (Arabic: درهم) and is abbreviated as either QR (English) or ر.ق (Arabic).

History

Until 1966, Qatar used the Indian rupee as currency, in the form of Gulf rupees. When India devalued the rupee in 1966, Qatar, along with the other states using the Gulf rupee, chose to introduce its own currency.[1] Before doing so, Qatar briefly adopted the Saudi riyal, then introduced the Qatar and Dubai riyal which was the result of signing the Qatar-Dubai Currency Agreement on 21 March 1966.[2] The Saudi riyal was worth 1.065 rupees, whilst the Qatar and Dubai riyal was equal to the rupee prior to its devaluation.

Following Dubai's entrance into the United Arab Emirates, Qatar began issuing the Qatari riyal separate from Dubai on 19 May 1973. The old notes continued to circulate in parallel for 90 days, at which time they were withdrawn. [3]

For a wider history surrounding currency in the region, see the history of British currency in the Middle East.

Coins

In 1966, coins were introduced in the name of Qatar and Dubai for 1, 5, 10, 25 and 50 dirham. In 1973, a new series of coins was introduced in the same sizes and compositions as the earlier pieces but in the name of Qatar only. [4]

Banknotes

On September 18, 1966, the Qatar & Dubai Currency Board introduced notes for 1, 5, 10, 25, 50 and 100 riyals. These were replaced on 19 May 1973 by notes of the Qatar Monetary Agency in denominations of 1, 5, 10, 100, and 500 riyals; a 50-riyal note was issued in 1976. The Qatar Central Bank was established by decree 15 on 5 August 1973. All coins and notes issued by the Qatar Monetary Agency became the property of the bank but continued to circulate for several years.[5]

Current Series
Image Value Main Colour Description
Obverse Reverse Obverse Reverse
1 riyal Grey Coat of arms of Qatar Native birds
5 riyals Green National Museum, Native animals
10 riyals Orange Sand dunes
50 riyals Pink The Pearl Oyster Monument and a view of the Qatar Central Bank building
100 riyals Green & Gold Old Mosque and Al-Shaqab Institute
500 riyals Blue Falcon, with a view of the Amiri Diwan of Qatar which serves as the government building for the State of Qatar

Fixed exchange rate

The Qatari riyal is pegged to the US dollar at a fixed exchange rate of $1 USD = 3.64 QR. This rate was enshrined into Qatari law by Royal Decree No.34 of 2001, signed by Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, Emir of Qatar, on 9 July 2001.

Article (1) states that the Qatari riyal exchange rate shall be pegged against the US dollar at 3.64, and sets upper and lower limits of 3.6415 QR and 3.6385 QR for the Qatar Central Bank's purchase and sale of dollars with banks operating in Qatar. Article (2) provides the Qatar Central Bank with the authority to determine the volume and the time of sale of US dollars and the associated conditions of such sales and payments. Article (3) cancels the earlier Royal Decree No.60 of 1975, by which the riyal was officially pegged to the IMF's special drawing rights (SDRs).[6][7][8]

Current QAR exchange rates
From Google Finance: AUD CAD CHF EUR GBP HKD JPY USD INR KRW
From Yahoo! Finance: AUD CAD CHF EUR GBP HKD JPY USD INR KRW
From XE: AUD CAD CHF EUR GBP HKD JPY USD INR KRW
From OANDA: AUD CAD CHF EUR GBP HKD JPY USD INR KRW
From fxtop.com: AUD CAD CHF EUR GBP HKD JPY USD INR KRW

Note: Rates obtained from these websites may contradict with pegged rate mentioned above

See also

References

  1. "Monetary System in Qatar Historical Background".
  2. The Bank Notes of the Qatar and Dubai Currency Board
  3. Linzmayer, Owen (2012). "Qatar & Dubai". The Banknote Book. San Francisco, CA: www.BanknoteNews.com.
  4. See these coins at
  5. Linzmayer, Owen (2012). "Qatar". The Banknote Book. San Francisco, CA: www.BanknoteNews.com.
  6. Qatar Central Bank: Instructions to Banks, Volume 1
  7. Exchange Rate Policy, Qatar Central Bank
  8. Tables of modern monetary history: Asia Archived February 19, 2007, at the Wayback Machine.
Preceded by:
Saudi riyal
Reason: delivery of local currency
Ratio: 1.065 Qatari and Dubai riyal = 1 Saudi riyal, or 1 Qatari and Dubai riyal = 1 pre-devalued Gulf rupee
Currency of Qatar
1966 1973
Succeeded by:
Qatari riyal
Reason: withdrawal of Dubai from common currency
Ratio: at par
Currency of Trucial States except for Abu Dhabi
1966 1973
Succeeded by:
United Arab Emirates dirham
Reason: formed United Arab Emirates (in 1971)
Ratio: at par
Preceded by:
Qatari and Dubai riyal
Reason: withdrawal of Dubai from common currency
Ratio: at par
Currency of Qatar
1973
Succeeded by:
Current
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