The Cayman Islands Dollar ( currency code ''KYD'') is the

currency A currency is a standardization of money in any form, in use or circulation as a medium of exchange, for example banknotes and coins. A more general definition is that a currency is a ''system of money'' in common use within a specific envi ...

of the

Cayman Islands The Cayman Islands () is a self-governing British Overseas Territories, British Overseas Territory, and the largest by population. The territory comprises the three islands of Grand Cayman, Cayman Brac and Little Cayman, which are located so ...

. It is abbreviated with the

dollar sign The dollar sign, also known as the peso sign, is a currency symbol consisting of a Letter case, capital crossed with one or two vertical strokes ( or depending on typeface), used to indicate the unit of various currency, currencies around ...

''$'', or alternatively ''CI$'' to distinguish it from other

dollar Dollar is the name of more than 25 currencies. The United States dollar, named after the international currency known as the Spanish dollar, was established in 1792 and is the first so named that still survives. Others include the Australian d ...

-denominated currencies. It is subdivided into 100 cents.

History

The Cayman Islands dollar was introduced in 1972 (10 years after separation from the

Colony of Jamaica The Crown Colony of Jamaica and Dependencies was a British colony from 1655, when it was Invasion of Jamaica (1655), captured by the The Protectorate, English Protectorate from the Spanish Empire. Jamaica became a British Empire, British colon ...

), replacing the Jamaican dollar at par. Jamaican currency and Cayman Islands dollars both remained legal tender until 31 August 1972, when Jamaican currency ceased to be legal tender. The Cayman Islands dollar has been pegged to the

United States dollar The United States dollar (Currency symbol, symbol: Dollar sign, $; ISO 4217, currency code: USD) is the official currency of the United States and International use of the U.S. dollar, several other countries. The Coinage Act of 1792 introdu ...

at 1 Cayman Islands dollar = 1.2 U.S. dollars since 1 April 1974, when the Currency Law of 1974 was enacted. In 1983, the 1974 law was repealed and replaced by the Currency Law Revised, which itself was replaced in 1997 by section 22 of the Monetary Authority Law. Under section 22 of the 2013 revision of the Monetary Authority Law, the value of the Cayman dollar in United States Dollars is determined by the Governor. In February 2023, it was reported that the Monetary Authority was seeking public input for a new set of coin and banknote designs, which will feature

King Charles III Charles III (Charles Philip Arthur George; born 14 November 1948) is King of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth realms. Charles was born at Buckingham Palace during the reign of his maternal grandfather, King George VI, and ...

. Following the completion of this process, the Monetary Authority will authorise production of the new designs, then gradually phase them into circulation.

Coins

In 1972, coins in denominations of 1¢, 5¢, 10¢ and 25¢ were introduced. The 1¢ was struck in

bronze Bronze is an alloy consisting primarily of copper, commonly with about 12–12.5% tin and often with the addition of other metals (including aluminium, manganese, nickel, or zinc) and sometimes non-metals (such as phosphorus) or metalloid ...

, with the other denominations in

cupronickel Cupronickel or copper–nickel (CuNi) is an alloy of copper with nickel, usually along with small quantities of other metals added for strength, such as iron and manganese. The copper content typically varies from 60 to 90 percent. ( Monel is a n ...

. From 1992, copper and nickel-plated steel replaced bronze and cupronickel, respectively.

Banknotes

On 1 May 1972, the Cayman Islands Currency Board introduced notes in denominations of 1, 5, 10 and 25 dollars. 40 dollar notes were introduced in 1981 but were taken out of circulation a few years later, followed by 100 dollars in 1982 and 50 dollars in 1987. On 1 January 1997, the Cayman Islands Monetary Authority (CIMA) took over issuance of paper money, issuing notes for 1, 5, 10, 25, 50 and 100 dollars. The current series of notes was issued on 4 April 2011. The CIMA issued notes of 70 dollars in 2023 to commemorate the anniversary of the

death of Elizabeth II Elizabeth II, Queen of the United Kingdom and the other Commonwealth realms, died on 8 September 2022 at Balmoral Castle in Scotland, at the age of 96. Elizabeth's reign of 70 years and 214 days was the List of monarchs in Britain by length of ...

and the

Platinum Jubilee of Elizabeth II The Platinum Jubilee of Elizabeth II was the international celebration in 2022 marking the Platinum jubilee, 70th anniversary of the accession of Queen Elizabeth II on 6 February 1952. It was the first time that any History of monarchy in the U ...

Exchange rates

On the islands, the US dollar is accepted as legal currency by hotels, restaurants, and retail establishments at the rate of 1 US Dollar for every 80 Cayman cents. Change is usually given in Cayman Island dollars. Banks buy US Dollars at 82 Cayman Island cents each and sell 1.20 US dollars per Cayman Island dollar. , the Cayman Islands Monetary Authority uses a retail exchange rate of CI$1.00 = US$1.227.

Half pounds

The Cayman Islands dollar is an offshoot of the Jamaican dollar, which is essentially a half

pound sterling Sterling (symbol: £; currency code: GBP) is the currency of the United Kingdom and nine of its associated territories. The pound is the main unit of sterling, and the word '' pound'' is also used to refer to the British currency general ...

Jamaica Jamaica is an island country in the Caribbean Sea and the West Indies. At , it is the third-largest island—after Cuba and Hispaniola—of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean. Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, west of Hispaniola (the is ...

followed the pattern of

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

, and

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

in using the half-pound unit as opposed to the pound as the unit of account when it adopted the decimal system. The choice of the name "

" was motivated by the fact that the reduced value of the new unit corresponded more closely to the value of the

US dollar The United States dollar (symbol: $; currency code: USD) is the official currency of the United States and several other countries. The Coinage Act of 1792 introduced the U.S. dollar at par with the Spanish silver dollar, divided it int ...

than it did to the

References

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External links

Cayman Islands Monetary Authority
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cayman Islands Dollar Circulating currencies Dollar Economy of the Cayman Islands Fixed exchange rate Currencies of dependent territories of the United Kingdom Currencies introduced in 1972 Currencies of the Caribbean