Кирибати долларының тарихы мен айналымы

Currency of Kiribati

The Kiribati dollar is one of the two official currencies of Kiribati. The Kiribati coins are pegged at 1:1 ratio to the Australian dollar, the other official currency of Kiribati. Kiribati coins were issued in 1979 and circulate alongside banknotes and coins of the Australian dollar. In present day, Kiribati coins are rare in comparison to Australian coins with the last minor emission made in 1992, and these old coins are now generally collectors items. The complete emissions of coins were made in 1979 and in 1989 for the tenth anniversary of independence.

Before independence, Australian coins were used in Kiribati (then part of the Gilbert and Ellice Islands) from 1966 until 1979. Previous to Australia's introduction of the dollar, the Australian pound, since World War I, was chiefly used throughout the islands, though Gilbert and Ellice Islands banknotes issued in the 1940s were also in use and were redeemable for Pound Sterling at face value. During Japanese occupation of the islands during World War II, the Oceanian pound, an all banknote currency created by the Japanese Government to be a universal currency for the Pacific, was in use. The Australian pound was restored, always in use in the atolls not occupied by Japan, as the official currency after the war ended. A call to issue coinage for an independent Kiribati in 1979 was made to legitimise its new political status, and although Australian banknotes would be used, the decision to issue domestic coins was widely favoured and accepted. A two dollar coin was introduced in 1989 to replace the note and celebrate the nation's tenth anniversary.

Australian pound Sterling banknotes were introduced to the region in 1914 shortly before the Gilbert Islands gained status from a protectorate to a crown colony of Great Britain in 1916. These continued to be the main source of exchange until the decimalisation of 1966. In 1942, local banknotes were issued under the authority of the Gilbert and Ellice Islands Government and were locally produced with a primitive and austere design. These notes were valued on parity with sterling and issued in denominations of 1, 2, 5, and 10 shillings and 1 pound. After the wartime emergency had passed these notes were discontinued and gradually phased out. Due to their scarcity, these notes are highly collectable. In 1966, the new Australian dollar became the new official currency of the Gilbert and Ellice Islands, replacing the pound notes. Only 1, 2, and 10 dollars were used at first, but 5, 20, 50, and 100 dollars were later sent for use. This continued to be the official currency after the break up of the joint Gilbert and Ellice colonies and following independence of the Gilberts and annexed territories as Kiribati. The 1 dollar notes circulated alongside a local coin. The 1 and 2 dollar notes were later withdrawn in favour of Kiribati and Australian issued coins.