Indonesian rupiah

The Rupiah (Rp) is the currency of Indonesia (ISO 4217 currency code IDR). The name derives from the Indian monetary unit rupee.

History

First Rupiah, 1945-1965

The first rupiah was introduced in 1945 in those parts of the Netherlands Indies under the control of Republic of Indonesia. During the 1945-1949 civil war, the rupiah circulated alongside the Netherlands Indies gulden (including issues of the Japanese government, the Javanese Bank (Java rupiah) and the Dutch Government (Nica gulden)) and the Netherlands Indies roepiah, which had also been issued by the Japanese government. By the end of 1949, the Republic's rupiah replaced the other currencies throughout Indonesia.

The Riau islands and the Indonesian half of New Guinea (Irian Barat) had their own variants of the rupiah, but these were subsumed into the national rupiah in 1964 and 1971 respectively (see Riau rupiah and West New Guinea rupiah).

Second Rupiah, 1965-

Rampant inflation caused, on December 13, 1965, the new rupiah to be introduced at a rate of 1000 old rupiah to one new rupiah.

The Asian financial crisis of 1997-1998 reduced the rupiah's value by 35% overnight and was a major factor in the overthrow of President Suharto's government. The rupiah had traded at about 2,000–3,000 rupiah per 1 USD, but reached a low of 16,800 rupiah per dollar in June 1998.

The rupiah is a freely convertible currency, but trades at a discount due to continued high inflation. As of June 2006, 1 USD is worth approximately Rp 9,200. Inside Indonesia the preferred currency for exchange is the US dollar. Other currencies are typically subject to a wide exchange spread.

Notes and coins

Indonesian currency comes in whole units only, as sen ( rupiah, cents) have been eliminated due to inflation.

Indonesian bank notes are typical paper notes, although polymer notes have been issued on two occasions. In 1993, five million polymer 50,000 rupiah notes were issued to commemorate "25 years of economic development", featuring Soeharto on the front and Soekarno-Hatta airport on the back, with a plane taking off to symbolise Indonesia's growth. The 1999 series 100,000 rupiah note was also plastic/polymer, issued because according to Bank Indonesia plastic would be harder to counterfeit and would last longer. However, the notes were not popular in banks as counting machines were unable to count them accurately, and the current (2004) series is now made from paper.

There are two series of banknotes currently in circulation, with the 2004–2005 series gradually replacing the 1998–2001 series. Pre-1997 notes are no longer legal tender but can be exchanged in Bank Indonesia offices. As the smallest current note is worth approximately ^*]0.10, even small transactions such as bus fares are typically conducted with notes, and the 1,000 rupiah note is far more common than the 1,000 rupiah coin.

There are presently two series of coinage in circulation: metal alloy coins from 1995–1997 and lightweight aluminum coins from 2002–2005. Due the low value and general shortage of small denomination coins (below 100 rupiah), it is common to receive sweets in lieu of the last few rupiah of change in supermarkets and stores.

Denominations

Coins
- 25 rupiah (metal alloy and aluminum)
- 50 rupiah (metal alloy and aluminum)
- 100 rupiah (metal alloy and aluminum)
- 200 rupiah (metal alloy and aluminum)
- 500 rupiah (metal alloy and aluminum)
- 1,000 rupiah (gold-silver bimetallic, rare)

Banknotes
- 1,000 rupiah (green-red)
- 5,000 rupiah (green-brown)
- 10,000 rupiah (purple)
- 20,000 rupiah (green)
- 50,000 rupiah (blue)
- 100,000 rupiah (red)

External links

Bank Indonesia
Daily Rupiah exchange rates from other currencies (Bank Indonesia rates)
Latest Rupiah exchange rates from USD, EUR, GBP, and other currencies (from Yahoo! Finance)
Polymer Notes - Indonesia
Indonesian Government Security Printing and Minting Corp. (PERURI)
Identifying the authenticity of Rupiah banknotes and coins (Bank Indonesia)
Information on Rupiah (expat.or.id)
Images of banknotes Rupiah (Banknotes.com)
Images of banknotes Guilder (Banknotes.com)

Economy of Indonesia