TheArab Emirates Dirham(/ˈdɪər(h)əm/;[2]Arabic:درهم إماراتي,abbreviation:د.إinArabic,Dh(singular) andDhs(plural) orDHinLatin;ISO code:AEDis the official currency of theUnited Arab Emirates.The dirham is subdivided into 100fils(فلس).It is pegged to theUnited States Dollarat a constant exchange rate of approximately 3.67 AED to 1 USD.
| درهم إماراتي(Arabic) | |
|---|---|
 Obverse of an Emirati one dirham coin | |
| ISO 4217 | |
| Code | AED (numeric:784) |
| Subunit | 0.01 |
| Unit | |
| Symbol | د.إ inArabic Dh/DhsorDHinLatin |
| Denominations | |
| Subunit | |
| 1⁄100 | fils(فلس) |
| Banknotes | Dhs5, Dhs10, Dhs20, Dhs50, Dhs100, Dhs200, Dhs500, Dhs1,000 |
| Coins | |
| Freq. used | 25, 50 fils, Dh1 |
| Rarely used | 1, 5, 10 fils |
| Demographics | |
| Date of introduction | 1973 |
| User(s) | United Arab Emirates |
| Issuance | |
| Central bank | Central Bank of the UAE |
| Website | www |
| Valuation | |
| Inflation | 1.87% |
| Source | The World Factbook,2023 |
| Pegged with | USD[1] US$1 = Dhs 3.6725 |
History
editThe namedirhamis a loan from the Greekδραχμή(drakhmé). Due to centuries of trade and usage of the currency,dirhamsurvived through theOttoman Empire.
Before 1966, all the emirates that now form the UAE used theGulf rupee,which was pegged at parity to theIndian rupee.On 6 June 1966, India decided to devalue the Gulf rupee against the Indian rupee. Not accepting the devaluation, several of the states still using the Gulf rupee adopted their own or other currencies. All theTrucial StatesexceptAbu Dhabiadopted theQatar and Dubai riyal,which was equal to the Gulf rupee prior to the devaluation. These emirates briefly adopted theSaudi riyalduring the transition from the Gulf rupee to the Qatar and Dubai riyal.Abu Dhabiused theBahraini dinar,at a rate of 10 Gulf rupees = 1 dinar. In 1973, the UAE adopted the UAE dirham as its currency.Abu Dhabiadopted the UAE dirham in place of the Bahraini dinar, at 1 dinar = 10 dirhams, while in the other emirates, the Qatar and Dubai riyal were exchanged at par.
Coins
editIn 1973, coins were introduced in denominations of 1, 5, 10, 25, and 50 fils and 1 dirham. The 1, 5, and 10 fils are struck in bronze, with the higher denominations incupro-nickel.The fils coins were the same size and composition as the corresponding Qatar and Dubai dirham coins. In 1995, the 5 fils, 10 fils, 50 fils, and 1 dirham coins were reduced in size, with the new 50 fils being curve-equilateral-heptagonal shaped.
The value and numbers on the coins are written inEastern Arabic numeralsand the text is inArabic.The 1, 5, and 10 fils coins are rarely used in everyday life, so all amounts are rounded up or down to the nearest multiples of 25 fils. The 1 fils coin is a rarity and does not circulate significantly. In making a change there is a risk of confusing the old 50 fils coin for the modern 1 dirham coin because the coins are almost the same size.
Since 1976 theCurrency Board of the United Arab Emirateshas minted severalcommemorative coinscelebrating different events and rulers of theUnited Arab Emirates.For details, seeCommemorative coins of the United Arab Emirates dirham.
| Image | Value | Technical parameters | Description | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Obverse | Reverse | Diameter | Thickness | Weight | Edge | Shape | Obverse | Reverse | |
| 1 fils | 15 mm | 1.1 mm | 1.5 g | Smooth | Circular | Three date palms at the center with the lettering "لزيادة انتاج المحاصيل الغذائية"above and theLunar HijriandGregorianyear of mint below. | Lettering: "الامارات العربية المتحدة",below it"١",below it"فلس"and below it" UNITED ARAB EMIRATES " | ||
| 5 fils | 19 mm | 1.65 mm | 2.9 g | Smooth | Circular | ALethrinus nebulousat the center with the lettering "نظافة البحار تعني المزيد من الغذاء للبشر"above and theLunar HijriandGregorianyear of mint below. | Lettering: "الامارات العربية المتحدة",below it"٥",below it"فلوس"and below it" UNITED ARAB EMIRATES " | ||
| 10 fils | 17 mm | 1.2 mm | 2.2 g | Smooth | Circular | Adhowwith theLunar HijriandGregorianyear of mint below. | Lettering: "الامارات العربية المتحدة",below it"١۰",below it"فلوس"and below it" UNITED ARAB EMIRATES " | ||
| 25 fils | 20 mm | 1.5 mm | 3.5 g | Milled | Circular | A Gazelle facing left with theLunar HijriandGregorianyear of mint below. | Lettering: "الامارات العربية المتحدة",below it"٢٥",below it"فلساً"and below it" UNITED ARAB EMIRATES " | ||
| 50 fils | 21 mm | 1.7 mm | 4.4 g | Smooth | Heptagon | Threeoil derrickswith theLunar HijriandGregorianyear of mint below. | Lettering: "الامارات العربية المتحدة",below it"٥۰",below it"فلساً"and below it" UNITED ARAB EMIRATES " | ||
|
|
Dh 1 | 24 mm | 2 mm | 6.1 g | Milled | Circular | ADallahwith theLunar HijriandGregorianyear of mint below. | Lettering: "الامارات العربية المتحدة",below it"١",below it"درهم"and below it" UNITED ARAB EMIRATES " | |
Issues with fraud
editBy August 2006 it became publicly known that thePhilippine one pesocoin is the same size as one dirham.[3]As 1 peso is only worth 8 fils, this has led tovending machine fraud in the UAE.Pakistan's 5 rupee coin,theOmani 50 Baisa coinand theMoroccan 1 dirhamare also the same sizes as the Emirati one dirham coin. Although 1 mm thinner, one dirham coin has also been found in ten-cent coin rolls in Australia. A falcon watermark is present on all dirham notes to prevent fraud.
Banknotes
editOn 20 May 1973, the UAE Currency Board introduced notes in denominations of 1, 5, 10, 50, and 100 dirhams; a Dhs 1,000 note was issued on 3 January 1976.[4]A second series of note was introduced in 1982 which omitted the Dh 1 and Dhs 1,000 notes. Dhs 500 notes were introduced in 1983, followed by Dhs 200 in 1989. Dhs 1,000 notes were reintroduced in 2000. Banknotes are currently available in denominations of Dhs 5 (brown), Dhs 10 (green), Dhs 20 (light blue), Dhs 50 (purple), Dhs 100 (pink), Dhs 200 (green/brown), Dhs 500 (navy blue) and Dhs 1,000 (greenish blue).
The obverse texts are written inArabicwith numbers inEastern Arabic numerals;the reverse texts are inEnglishwith numbers inArabic numerals.The 200 dirham denomination is scarce as it was only produced in 1989; any circulating today comes from bank stocks. The 200 dirham denomination has since been reissued and is now in circulation since late May 2008 – it has been reissued in a different colour; Yellow/Brown to replace the older Green/Brown.[5]
On 22 March 2008, TheCentral Bank of the United Arab Emiratesreleased a Dhs 50 note. The security thread was a 3-mm wide, colour-shifting windowed security thread with demetalized UAE 50, and it bore the new coat of arms. On 7 December 2021, a redesigned polymer Dhs 50 note was released to commemorate the golden jubilee of the country on 2 December 2021, making it the UAE's first polymer banknote.[6]Additional new polymer banknotes of Dhs 5 and Dhs 10 were introduced on 21 April 2022,[7]with the Dhs 1000 released in the first half of 2023,[8]and the Dhs 500 note reportedly introduced on 30 November 2023.[9]
| Image | Value | Main Color | Dimensions (mm) | Description | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Obverse | Reverse | Obverse | Reverse | |||
| [1] | Dhs 5 | Brown | 143 × 60 | Sharjah CentralSouqalso known as Islamic Souq, the Blue Souq or the central market | Imam Salem Al Mutawa Mosque, which was formerly known as Al Jamaa mosque inSharjah | |
| [2] | Dhs 10 | Green | 147 × 62 | AKhanjar | A pilot farm | |
| [3] | Dhs 20 | Blue | 149 × 63 | The front face of the Dubai Creek Golf and Yacht Club | Traditional tradingdhow(calledsama'a) | |
| [4] | Dhs 50 | Light Brown | 151 × 64 | AnOryx | Al Jahili Fort,a pre-Islamic fort inAl Ain | |
| [5] | Dhs 100 | Red | 155 × 66 | Al Fahidi Fort | Dubai World Trade Centrebuilding | |
| [6] | Dhs 200 | Dark Yellow | 157 × 67 | TheZayed Sports City Stadiumand the Sharia court building | TheCentral Bank of the UAEbuilding inAbu Dhabi | |
| [7] | Dhs 500 | Sky blue | 159 × 68 | ASaker falcon | TheJumeirah Mosque | |
| [8] | Dhs 1,000 | Brown | 163 × 70 | Qasr al-Hosn | View ofAbu Dhabiskyline | |
| Image | Value | Main Color | Dimensions (mm) | Description | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Obverse | Reverse | Obverse | Reverse | |||
| [9] | Dhs 5 | Brown | 143 × 60 | Ajman fort | Dhayah FortinRas al Khaimah | |
| [10] | Dhs 10 | Green | 147 × 62 | Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque | Khor Fakkan Amphitheatre | |
| [11] | Dhs 50 | Navy Blue | 151 x 64 | Sheikh Zayed Al Nahyanand the other founding fathers | Sheikh Zayedsigning a union document | |
| [12] | Dhs 500 | Light Blue | 159 × 68 | Terra Sustainability Pavilion in Expo Dubai | Museum of the Future in Dubai,Emirates Towers,Burj Khalifa | |
| [13] | Dhs 1,000 | Brown | 163 × 70 | Sheikh Zayed"Hope" probe | Barakah nuclear power plantinRuwais | |
Exchange rates
editOn January 28, 1978, the dirham was officially pegged to theIMF'sspecial drawing rights(SDRs).[10]In practice, it has been pegged to theU.S. dollarfor most of the time.[11]Since November 1997, the dirham has been pegged to the US dollar at a rate of US$1 = Dhs 3.6725,[12]which translates to approximately Dh 1 = US$0.272294.
| Current AED exchange rates | |
|---|---|
| FromGoogle Finance: | AUDCADCHFCNYEURGBPHKDJPYUSDSARBHDINR |
| FromYahoo! Finance: | AUDCADCHFCNYEURGBPHKDJPYUSDSARBHDINR |
| FromXE.com: | AUDCADCHFCNYEURGBPHKDJPYUSDSARBHDINR |
| From OANDA: | AUDCADCHFCNYEURGBPHKDJPYUSDSARBHDINR |
See also
editReferences
edit- ^"Annual Report 2014"(PDF).Archived fromthe original(PDF)on 5 April 2016.Retrieved14 June2016.
- ^Stevenson, Angus (19 August 2010).Oxford Dictionary of English.OUP Oxford. p. 496.ISBN978-0-19-957112-3.
- ^Menon, Sunita (1 August 2006)."Hey presto! A Peso's as good as a Dirham".gulfnews.com.Retrieved14 September2014.
- ^Linzmayer, Owen (2012). "United Arab Emirates".The Banknote Book.San Francisco, CA: www.BanknoteNews.com.
- ^url="Gulfnews: New Dh200 note to be issued in the UAE".Archived fromthe originalon 7 December 2008.Retrieved27 June2008.
- ^Forster, Sarah (7 December 2021)."UAE leaders attend launch of new Dh50 banknote".The National News. The National News.Archivedfrom the original on 9 December 2021.Retrieved9 December2021.
- ^UAE Central Bank
- ^Web Desk."UAE Central Bank issues new Dh1,000 banknote for National Day".Khaleej Times.Retrieved3 December2022.
- ^"United Arab Emirates new 500-dirham polymer note (B250a) reportedly introduced on 30.11.2023 – BanknoteNews".30 November 2023.Retrieved17 December2023.
- ^Dynamic Growth of the UAE Monetary and Banking Sector, Central Bank of the UAEArchivedMay 12, 2006, at theWayback Machine
- ^Tables of modern monetary history: AsiaArchivedFebruary 19, 2007, at theWayback Machine
- ^Statistical Bulletin, Quarterly July – Sep. 2005, Central Bank of the UAEArchived2011-08-15 at theWayback MachineVol. 25, No. 3
