The dollar (

sign A sign is an object, quality, event, or entity whose presence or occurrence indicates the probable presence or occurrence of something else. A natural sign bears a causal relation to its object—for instance, thunder is a sign of storm, or me ...

: $;

code In communications and information processing, code is a system of rules to convert information—such as a letter, word, sound, image, or gesture—into another form, sometimes shortened or secret, for communication through a communication ...

: BSD) has been the

currency A currency, "in circulation", from la, currens, -entis, literally meaning "running" or "traversing" 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 def ...

The Bahamas The Bahamas (), officially the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, is an island country within the Lucayan Archipelago of the West Indies in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic. It takes up 97% of the Lucayan Archipelago's land area and is home to ...

since 1966. It is normally abbreviated with the

dollar sign The dollar sign, also known as peso sign, is a symbol consisting of a capital " S" crossed with one or two vertical strokes ($ or ), used to indicate the unit of various currencies around the world, including most currencies denominated "pes ...

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

dollar Dollar is the name of more than 20 currencies. They include the Australian dollar, Brunei dollar, Canadian dollar, Hong Kong dollar, Jamaican dollar, Liberian dollar, Namibian dollar, New Taiwan dollar, New Zealand dollar, Singapore dollar, U ...

-denominated currencies. It is divided into 100 cents. On 20 October 2020, the Bahamas became the first country to have a legal

digital currency Digital currency (digital money, electronic money or electronic currency) is any currency, money, or money-like asset that is primarily managed, stored or exchanged on digital computer systems, especially over the internet. Types of digital cu ...

, introducing the ''Sand Dollar'' as an alternative to the traditional Bahamian dollar.

Relationship with the US dollar

The Bahamian dollar is pegged to the

US dollar The United States dollar (symbol: $; code: USD; also abbreviated US$ or U.S. Dollar, to distinguish it from other dollar-denominated currencies; referred to as the dollar, U.S. dollar, American dollar, or colloquially buck) is the official ...

on a one-to-one basis. The Central Bank of The Bahamas states that it uses

reserve requirement Reserve requirements are central bank regulations that set the minimum amount that a commercial bank must hold in liquid assets. This minimum amount, commonly referred to as the commercial bank's reserve, is generally determined by the centra ...

s, changes in the Bank discount rate and selective

credit control Credit control is the system used by businesses and central banks to make sure that credit is given only to borrowers who are likely to be able to repay it. As such matters are rarely certain, credit controllers control lending by calculating and ...

s, supplemented by

moral suasion Moral suasion is an appeal to morality, in order to influence or change behavior. A famous example is the attempt by William Lloyd Garrison and his American Anti-Slavery Society to end slavery in the United States by using moral suasion. In ec ...

, as main instruments of monetary policy. The Central Bank's objective is to keep stable conditions, including credit, in order to maintain the parity between the US dollar and the Bahamian dollar while allowing economic development to proceed. Although the US dollar (as any other foreign currency) is subject to exchange control laws in The Bahamas, the parity between Bahamian dollars and US dollars means that any business will accept either US or Bahamian currency and many of the businesses that serve tourists have extra US dollars on hand for the convenience of American tourists.

History

The dollar replaced the pound at a rate of 1 dollar = 7

shilling The shilling is a historical coin, and the name of a unit of modern currencies formerly used in the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, other British Commonwealth countries and Ireland, where they were generally equivalent to 12 pence o ...

s (US$0.98) in 1966, 7 years before independence. This rate allowed the establishment of parity with the US dollar, due to the sterling/dollar rate then being fixed at £1 = $2.80, after a slight revaluation of 2%. To aid in

decimalisation Decimalisation or decimalization (see spelling differences) is the conversion of a system of currency or of weights and measures to units related by powers of 10. Most countries have decimalised their currencies, converting them from non-decimal ...

, three-dollar bills and fifteen-cent coins were created, as three dollars was roughly equivalent to one pound, and fifteen cents to a shilling, at the time of transition. On 20 October 2020, the Bahamas became the first country to have a legal digital currency,Mathias Müller
''China verabschiedet sich langsam vom Bargeld.''

Neue Zürcher Zeitung The ''Neue Zürcher Zeitung'' (''NZZ''; "New Journal of Zürich") is a Swiss, German-language daily newspaper, published by NZZ Mediengruppe in Zürich. The paper was founded in 1780. It was described as having a reputation as a high-quality ne ...

online, 2021-01-28. Retrieved February 27, 2021. introducing the ''Sand Dollar'' as an alternative to the traditional Bahamian dollar.

Coins

In 1966, coins were introduced in denominations of 1, 5, 10, 15, 25, 50 cents, 1 and 2 dollars. The 1 cent was struck in nickel-brass, the 5, 10, and 15 cent in

cupronickel Cupronickel or copper-nickel (CuNi) is an alloy of copper that contains nickel and strengthening elements, such as iron and manganese. The copper content typically varies from 60 to 90 percent. (Monel is a nickel-copper alloy that contains a minimu ...

, the 25 cent in nickel, and the 50 cent and 1 dollar in silver. The 10 cent was scallop shaped, whilst the 15 cent was square. Silver coins were not issued for circulation after 1966. Bronze replaced nickel-brass in the 1 cent in 1970, followed by brass in 1974 and copper-plated zinc in 1985. In 1989, cupro-nickel 50 cent and 1 dollar coins were issued for circulation, although they did not replace the corresponding banknotes. The now-obsolete 1 cent coin is about the size of a US dime, and the 5 and 25 cent coins are about the same size as their US counterparts but with different metal compositions. The 15 cent coins are still produced by the Central Bank. All coins now bear the Bahamian Coat of Arms on one side with the words "Commonwealth of The Bahamas" and the date. The reverses of the coins show objects from Bahamian culture with the value of the coins in words. The 1 cent has three

starfish Starfish or sea stars are star-shaped echinoderms belonging to the class Asteroidea (). Common usage frequently finds these names being also applied to ophiuroids, which are correctly referred to as brittle stars or basket stars. Starfish ...

, the 5 cent a

pineapple The pineapple (''Ananas comosus'') is a tropical plant with an edible fruit; it is the most economically significant plant in the family Bromeliaceae. The pineapple is indigenous to South America, where it has been cultivated for many centuri ...

, the 10 cent two

bonefish The bonefish (''Albula vulpes'') is the type species of the bonefish family (Albulidae), the only family in order Albuliformes. History Bonefish were once believed to be a single species with a global distribution, however 9 different species ...

, the 15 cent a

hibiscus ''Hibiscus'' is a genus of flowering plants in the mallow family, Malvaceae. The genus is quite large, comprising several hundred species that are native to warm temperate, subtropical and tropical regions throughout the world. Member species ...

, and the 25 cent a native

sloop A sloop is a sailboat with a single mast typically having only one headsail in front of the mast and one mainsail aft of (behind) the mast. Such an arrangement is called a fore-and-aft rig, and can be rigged as a Bermuda rig with triangular sa ...

. The 1 cent was demonetised at the end of 2020. All cash transactions in the Bahamas are now rounded to the nearest five cents.

Banknotes

In 1966, the government introduced notes in denominations of , 1, 3, 5, 10, 20, 50 and 100 dollars. The Bahamas Monetary Authority took over the issuance of paper money in 1968, issuing the same denominations. The Central Bank of the Bahamas was established on 1 June 1974 and took over note issuance from that point forward. Its first issue of notes did not include the and 3 dollar denominations but these were reintroduced in 1984. The dollar has undergone several revisions in the last twenty years, one of the more notable being an extremely colourful redesign in celebration of the quincentennial of the landing of

Christopher Columbus Christopher Columbus * lij, Cristoffa C(or)ombo * es, link=no, Cristóbal Colón * pt, Cristóvão Colombo * ca, Cristòfor (or ) * la, Christophorus Columbus. (; born between 25 August and 31 October 1451, died 20 May 1506) was a ...

on a Bahamian island he named

San Salvador San Salvador (; ) is the capital and the largest city of El Salvador and its eponymous department. It is the country's political, cultural, educational and financial center. The Metropolitan Area of San Salvador, which comprises the capital i ...

. All banknotes other than the fifty cent note have been undergoing design changes to foil

forgery Forgery is a white-collar crime that generally refers to the false making or material alteration of a legal instrument with the specific intent to defraud anyone (other than themself). Tampering with a certain legal instrument may be forbidd ...

in recent years, although the notes implemented more stringent security long before the US's recent redesign of their notes. All banknotes are the same physical size, like the US dollar but unlike the

euro The euro ( symbol: €; code: EUR) is the official currency of 19 out of the member states of the European Union (EU). This group of states is known as the eurozone or, officially, the euro area, and includes about 340 million citizens . ...

. The latest counterfeit-proof formula is the "Counterfeit Resistant Integrated Security Product", or CRISP. The new banknote was released on 5 August 2005, while the banknote was released on 6 September 2006. In October 2005, someone counterfeited one of the new CRISP bills, serial number A161315. Bahamian authorities warned merchants to look for banknotes that lacked the distinctive watermark. Until 1992, all notes displayed a portrait of

Queen Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 1926 – 8 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until Death and state funeral of Elizabeth II, her death in 2022. She was queen ...

(Head of State) but notes began to display portraits of prominent deceased Bahamian politicians. This policy is now being reversed, with the return of the Queen's portrait to the note. The $ shows an older Queen Elizabeth II and the back shows a picture of Sister Sarah in the Nassau Straw Market; the shows

Sir Lynden Pindling Sir Lynden Oscar Pindling, NH, KCMG, PC, JP (22 March 193026 August 2000) was a Bahamian politician who is regarded as the "Father of the Nation" of the Bahamas, having led it to majority rule on 10 January 1967 and to independence on 10 Jul ...

and on the back the Royal Bahamas Police Force Band; the has a young Queen Elizabeth II and on the back shows a Family Island Regatta with native sloops; the – Sir Cecil Wallace-Whitfield and the back shows a

Junkanoo Junkanoo is a street parade with music, dance, and costumes with origin in many islands across the English speaking Caribbean every Boxing Day (26 December) and New Year's Day (1 January). These cultural parades are predominantly showcased in t ...

group 'rushing' in the Junkanoo parade; the – an older Queen Elizabeth II (replacing

Sir Stafford Sands Sir Stafford Lofthouse Sands (23 September 1913 – January 23, 1972) was a former Minister of Finance of the Bahamas (1964–1967), who held other high positions in the islands until his self-chosen exile in 1967. He helped create the Bahamas' ...

) and the back shows the

Hope Town Hope Town is one of the districts of the Bahamas, districts of the Bahamas, on the Abaco Islands, Abaco islands as well as a small village on Elbow Cay, located in Abaco. The area had a population of 458 in 2010. Golf carts are the main mode of ...

Lighthouse and settlement in Abaco, the –

Sir Milo Butler Sir Milo Boughton Butler (11 August 190622 January 1979) was a Bahamian politician who served as the second governor-general of the Bahamas from 1973 to 1979. He died in office aged 72. Early life and family Butler was born in Nassau, The Bah ...

; the – Sir Roland Symonette; the – an older Queen Elizabeth II and the back shows a jumping

blue marlin ''Makaira'' (Latin via Greek: ''μαχαίρα'' "sword") is a genus of marlin in the family Istiophoridae. It includes the Atlantic blue, and Indo-Pacific blue marlins. In the past, the black marlin was also included in this genus, but today ...

, the national fish of The Bahamas. For this reason, the Bahamian bill is often referred to by locals as "a blue marlin". Since 2016, a new series called ''CRISP Evolution'' has been progressively introduced, maintaining the subjects and motifs of the previous banknotes while updating the security features and color schemes. The series began with the on 28 September 2016 and includes the from 27 September 2017, the from September 2018, the $ from 24 January 2019, the note from 28 March 2019, the note from 3 October 2019, the note from 23 September 2020 and the note on 6 October 2021.

References

Sources

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External links