Currencies List: 8 Major Currencies Of The World

A currency is a kind of money and medium of exchange.

Paper money or coins in circulation are referred to as currency. Whatever its form, all currencies have the same fundamental objectives. It promotes economic activity by expanding the market for a variety of items.

Most of the transactions we perform on a daily basis include cash, whether we use paper currency or a credit card. That is the reason why currencies of different countries with symbols are an important aspect to know.

Currencies List Across the World

There are 180 currencies recognized as legal tender in United Nations (UN). 

For the purposes of this currencies list, only currencies that are legal tender are considered.

So, without any further ado, the following is a list of countries and their currencies with their ISO 4217 code and the currency symbol.

List of Currencies: Europe

• The euro, which is used by 25 nations, is the most widely used currency in Europe. When a new country enters the European Union (EU), it is anticipated that it will also join the eurozone after meeting the five convergence requirements.

• The only other EU member state that has received permission to avoid using the euro is Denmark. [Source] Sweden, unlike Denmark, hasn’t technically left the Eurozone, but it also hasn’t joined it. Instead, it has chosen not to use the Euro because it doesn’t meet the requirements of the ERM II (Exchange Rate Mechanism).

• The United Kingdom’s official currency, the pound sterling, is the fourth most traded currency in the world and is “a little bit more volatile than the euro,” according to the list of the top 8 most traded currencies.

•  19 of the 27 member states of the European Union, as well as five non-EU nations, now accept the euro as legal money (Monaco, San Marino, Vatican City, Andorra, and Montenegro). Kosovo uses the euro as well, but its independence is only partially recognized.

Currency symbol	Currency	Country	Currency code
€	Euro	Euro area countries	EUR
L	Albanian lek	Albania	ALL
Br	Belarusian ruble	Belarus	BYN
KM	Bosnia and Herzegovina convertible mark	Bosnia and Herzegovina	BAM
лв	Bulgarian lev	Bulgaria	BGN
kn	Croatian kuna	Croatia	HRK
Kč	Czech koruna	Czechia	CZK
kr	Danish krone	Denmark	DKK
kn	Croatian Kuna	Croatia	HRK
₾	Georgian lari	Georgia	GEL
kr	Danish krone	Greenland	DKK
ft	Hungarian forint	Hungary	HUF
kr, Íkr	Icelandic króna	Iceland	ISK
CHF	Swiss franc	Liechtenstein	CHF
L	Moldovan leu	Moldova	MDL
ден	Second Macedonian denar	North Macedonia	MKD
kr	Norwegian krone	Norway	NOK
zł	Polish zloty	Poland	PLN
lei	Romanian leu	Romania	RON
₽	Russian ruble	Russia	RUB
RSD	Serbian dinar	Serbia	RSD
kr	Swedish krona	Sweden	SEK
CHF	Swiss franc	Switzerland	CHF
₺	Turkish lira	Turkey	TRY
₴	Ukrainian hryvnia	Ukraine	UAH
£	Pounds sterling	United Kingdom	GBP

List of Currencies: The US

• The US dollar is a widely used currency throughout the Americas. It is the largest reserve currency in the world, with an annual economic worth that brings the United States approximately $100 billion.

•  However, due to the rise in the value of the US dollar, its status as a reserve currency hurts American exporters. In international commodity markets, the US dollar is also considered “standard.”

• The U.S. dollar has been accepted as the official currency of many other nations, a practice known as “dollarization.” Although the U.S. dollar is not recognized as legal cash, there are a few other nations where it is semi-dollarized, and unofficial dollarization exists in many more places.

• The East Caribbean dollar is the most popular currency by the number of Caribbean nations that use it. After being tied to the pound sterling for more than 35 years prior to 1976, the East Caribbean dollar is now pegged to the US dollar.

• The Chilean peso, the country’s currency, is likewise strong. However, this once more implies that manufacturing struggles since imports at lower prices are driving them out of business.

• The Brazilian real is a strong South American currency. Under presidents Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and Dilma Rousseff, the real’s value almost quadrupled, which caused a big change in the economy that helped many middle-class people a lot.

Currency symbol	Currency	Country	Currency code
$	United States Dollar	US Dollar countries	USD
$	East Caribbean dollar	OECS countries	XCD
ƒ	Aruban florin	Aruba	AWG
$	Argentine peso	Argentina	ARS
B$	Bahamian dollar	The Bahamas	BSD
$	Barbadian dollar	Barbados	BBD
$	Bermudian dollar	Bermuda	BMD
BZ$	Belize dollar	Belize	BZD
Bs	Bolivian boliviano	Bolivia	BOB
R$	Brazilian real	Brazil	BRL
CA$	Canadian dollar	Canada	CAD
CI$	Cayman Islands dollar	Cayman Islands	KYD
$	Chilean peso	Chile	CLP
$	Colombian peso	Colombia	COP
₡	Costa Rican colón	Costa Rica	CRC
CUC$	Cuban peso	Cuba	CUP
ƒ	Netherlands Antillean guilder	Curaçao	ANG
RD$	Dominican peso	Dominican Republic	DOP
FK£	Falkland Islands pound	Falkland Islands	FKP
Q	Guatemalan quetzal	Guatemala	GTQ
G$	Guyanese dollar	Guyana	GYD
G	Haitian gourde	Haiti	HTG
L	Honduran lempira	Honduras	HNL
J$	Jamaican dollar	Jamaica	JMD
$	Mexican peso	Mexico	MXN
C$	Nicaraguan córdoba	Nicaragua	NIO
B/.	Panamanian balboa	Panama	PAB
₲	Paraguayan guaraní	Paraguay	PYG
S/.	Peruvian sol	Peru	PEN
ƒ	Netherlands Antillean guilder	Sint Maarten	ANG
Sr$	Surinamese dollar	Suriname	SRD
TT$	Trinidad and Tobago dollar	Trinidad and Tobago	TTD
$U	Uruguayan peso	Uruguay	UYU
Bs.	Venezuelan bolívar	Venezuela	VED

List of Currencies: Middle East

• The currency of the State of Kuwait is called the Kuwaiti dinar. Being the most expensive currency on earth is what makes it interesting in the first place.[Source] Since most of the nations in this part of the world have a fixed exchange rate system, this region’s exchange rates share a similar trait.

• The United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Jordan, and more nations fall within this category. Knowing this can help you protect yourself against market turbulence that might lower the value of your currency.

• Suppose you travel to these areas with Australian dollars, but the value of the currency drops significantly. In that scenario, you would need to swap the money at a reduced rate at an exchange house. The US dollar is also widely used in the Middle East, where tourism and foreign direct investments are becoming the main sources of income.

Currency symbol	Currency	Country	Currency code
؋	Afghan afghani	Afghanistan	AFN
֏, դր	Armenian dram	Armenia	AMD
₼	Azerbaijani manat	Azerbaijan	AZN
.د.ب	Bahraini dinar	Bahrain	BHD
€	Euro	Cyprus	EUR
ლარი	Lari	Georgia	GEL
ع.د	Iraqi dinar	Iraq	IQD
﷼	Iranian rial	Iran	IRR
₪	Israeli new shekel	Israel	ILS
ينار	Jordanian dinar	Jordan	JOD
ك	Kuwaiti dinar	Kuwait	KWD
ل.ل	Lebanese pound	Lebanon	LBP
₪	Israeli shekel	Palestine	ILS
£S	Syrian pound	Syria	SYP
AED	Emirati dirham	United Arab Emirates (UAE)	AED
₪	Israeli shekel	Israel	ILS
ر.ع	Omani rial	Oman	OMR
ر.ق	Qatari riyal	Qatar	QAR
SR	Saudi riyal	Saudi Arabia	SAR
﷼	Yemeni rial	Yemen	YER

List of Currencies: Africa

• Some of the newly adopted currencies were retained when African nations gained independence throughout the 20th century, but others changed the names of their currencies for a variety of reasons.

• While the original bartering system is still widely used in rural areas, inflation nowadays frequently leads to a need for more stable foreign currency, which is nevertheless illegal. The Tunisian dinar (TND) is Africa’s strongest currency as of June 1st, 2022.

• The necessity for currency revaluation has also arisen as a result of instances of extreme inflation in numerous African currencies (e.g. the Zimbabwe dollar).[Source] In many rural areas, people still barter a lot. This is because the goods they trade are worth more right now than the official money.

• The East African rupee, which was derived through extensive commerce with Arabia and India, was supplanted by the East African shilling once the British gained dominance in the area, signaling a change in the major foreign power relationship and a new trend.

•  The South African rand was replaced by the Botswana pula in Botswana in 1976, as other nations did with their dominating neighbor’s currency. Even though they are post-colonial, several nations have not switched their currencies. Uganda, for instance, still uses the Ugandan shilling.

Currency symbol	Currency	Country	Currency code
FCFA	CFA franc	West Africa	XAF
CFA	CFA franc	Central Africa	XOF
دج	Algerian dinar	Algeria	DZD
Kz	Angolan kwanza	Angola	AOA
P	Botswana pula	Botswana	BWP
FBu	Burundian franc	Burundi	BIF
CVE	Cape Verdean escudo	Cabo Verde	CVE
CF	Comorian franc	Comoros	KMF
FC	Congolese franc	Democratic Republic of the Congo	CDF
Fdj	Djiboutian franc	Djibouti	DJF
E£	Egyptian pound	Egypt	EGP
Nkf	Eritrean nakfa	Eritrea	ERN
Br	Ethiopian birr	Ethiopia	ETB
L	Lilangeni	Eswatini	SZL
D	Dalasi	Gambia	GMD
GH₵	Ghanaian cedi	Ghana	GHS
FG	Guinean franc	Guinea	GNF
KSh	Kenyan shilling	Kenya	KES
L	Lesotho loti	Lesotho	LSL
LD$	Liberian dollar	Liberia	LRD
LD	Libyan dinar	Libya	LYD
Ar	Malagasy ariary	Madagascar	MGA
K	Malawian kwacha	Malawi	MWK
₨	Mauritian rupee	Mauritius	MUR
UM	Ouguiya	Mauritania	MRU
DH	Moroccan dirham	Morocco	MAD
MT	Mozambican metical	Mozambique	MZN
N$	Namibian dollar	Namibia	NAD
₦	Nigerian naira	Nigeria	NGN
R₣	Rwandan franc	Rwanda	RWF
Db	São Tomé and Príncipe dobra	Sao Tome and Principe	STN
SR	Seychellois rupee	Seychelles	SCR
Le	Sierra Leonean leone	Sierra Leone	SLL
Sh.So.	Somali shilling	Somalia	SOS
R	South african rand	South Africa	ZAR
SS£	South Sudanese pound	South Sudan	SSP
SDG	Sudanese pound	Sudan	SDG
TSh	Tanzanian shilling	Tanzania	TZS
د.ت	Tunisian dinar	Tunisia	TND
USh	Ugandan shilling	Uganda	UGX
$	United States Dollar	Zimbabwe	USD

List of Currencies: Asia & The Pacific region

• Every nation in Asia uses its own currency for both domestic payments and local trade. This is in contrast to Europe, which has a single dominant currency. The Chinese Yuan and the Indian Rupee, which are both used in Asia’s two largest countries, are the two currencies that are used the most globally.

• The most popular currencies for trade and international financial transactions include the Chinese Yuan, the Japanese Yen, the Singapore dollar, and the Hong Kong dollar. These are also listed among the top 10 currencies in the world by volume of trading on the foreign exchange market.

• Asia’s economy has grown at the fastest rate in the world, with the highest GDP measured in PPP, or Public Power Parity. Asian countries, including China, India, and Japan, have some of the world’s largest economies.

• There are differences between the states and the nations throughout the entire continent in terms of wealth. The most affluent countries in Asia with the highest GDP per capita are the oil-rich countries of western and eastern Asia, such as the UAE, Kuwait, Iran, Oman, and Saudi Arabia.

• It is remarkable that the kina appears to be so highly correlated with the US dollar given that it is the only floating currency in the Pacific, and it’s probable that this is due to the volume of commerce with Asia.

• It has recently been suggested in Australian debates that the economies of Pacific island nations should “dollarize” to the Australian dollar, which has been complicated by political and economic ambiguity.

• Analysis of common currency methods suggests that the dollarization of the US dollar is preferred. Asia is anticipated to surpass Australia as a significant Pacific island’s main commercial partner. For economic reasons, a debate on Pacific currency reform should at least take US dollarization into account.

Currency symbol	Currency	Country	Currency code
A$	Australian dollar	Australia	AUD
৳	Bangladeshi taka	Bangladesh	BDT
Nu	Bhutanese ngultrum	Bhutan	BTN
B$	Brunei dollar	Brunei	BND
៛	Cambodian riel	Cambodia	KHR
¥ /元	Chinese yuan	China	CNY
$ / HK$ / “元”	Hong Kong dollar	Hong Kong	HKD
Rp	Indonesian rupiah	Indonesia	IDR
₹	Indian rupee	India	INR
¥	Japanese yen	Japan	JPY
₸	Kazakhstani tenge	Kazakhstan	KZT
som	Kyrgyzstani som	Kyrgyzstan	KGS
₭	Lao kip	Laos	LAK
MOP$	Macanese pataca	Macau	MOP
RM	Malaysian ringgit	Malaysia	MYR
MRf	Maldivian rufiyaa	Maldives	MVR
₮	Mongolian tögrög	Mongolia	MNT
K	Kyat	Myanmar	MMK
Rs	Nepalese rupee	Nepal	NPR
$	New Zealand dollar	New Zealand	NZD
₩	North Korean won	North Korea	KPW
Rs	Pakistani rupee	Pakistan	PKR
₱	Philippine peso	Philippines	PHP
S$	Singapore dollar	Singapore	SGD
₩	South Korean won	South Korea	KRW
Rs	Sri Lankan rupee	Sri Lanka	LKR
NT$	New Taiwan dollar	Taiwan	TWD
TJS	Somoni	Tajikistan	TJS
US$	US Dollar	Timor-Leste	USD
฿	Thai baht	Thailand	THB
m	Turkmen new manat	Turkmenistan	TMT
som	Uzbekistan som	Uzbekistan	UZS
₫	Vietnamese đồng	Vietnam	VND

The Top 8 Currencies Of The World

1. U.S. Dollar (USD)

• The greatest economy in the world, the United States, uses the U.S. dollar, sometimes known as the “greenback,” as its official unit of exchange.
• The dollar, like any other currency, is backed by economic fundamentals like the GDP, manufacturing, and employment figures.

2. European Euro (EUR)  

• The European Central Bank (ECB), which handles the whole continent’s monetary policy, has a greater degree of independence from national governments than other central banks.
• The ECB determines monetary policy for the eurozone. Because of its independence, the euro remains robust.

3. Japan Yen (JPY)

• The Japanese yen’s protracted history of zero interest rates, however, is actually its most significant feature. Japan was a global innovator of zero rates more than 20 years ago.
• Currently, interest rates are at, very close to, or even below zero in a few nations. However, the concept is the same. Japan’s trading strength is in manufactured products.

4. The British pound (GBP)

• GBP is the oldest currency in existence that is still in use today. Even though there have been many ups and downs over its 1,200-year history.
• The pound, also known as sterling, is the fourth most actively traded currency after the U.S. dollar, euro, and Japanese yen.

5. Swiss Franc (CHF)

• The long-standing zero-inflation policy of the Swiss Central Bank and Switzerland’s political neutrality make the CHF a very strong and stable currency.
• It goes up in value when there is political and economic unrest, like when the European debt crisis broke out in 2008.

6. The Canadian Dollar (CAD)

• The relative economic health of Canada, the country’s strong sovereign status, and the stability of its judicial and political institutions all contribute to the Canadian dollar’s popularity among central banks.

7. The Australian Dollar and the New Zealand Dollar (AUD/NZD)

• The appeal of Australia and New Zealand among currency traders is due to the three Gs: geology, geography, and government policy.
• A plethora of in-demand natural resources, including oil, gold, agricultural goods, diamonds, iron ore, uranium, nickel, and coal, have been provided to the corporation by geology.

8. South African Rand (ZAR)

• The South African rand (ZAR) is the nation’s official currency. Until the end of apartheid, the rand maintained a largely stable peg to the US dollar after its introduction in February 1961.

Also Read:

• What Is Money Made Of?
• Why Does Money Exist?
• Why Does Money Have Value?