Wikipedia

Gibraltar pound

The pound (sign: £; ISO code: GIP) is the currency of Gibraltar. It is pegged to – and exchangeable with – British pound sterling at par value. Coins and banknotes of the Gibraltar pound are issued by the Government of Gibraltar.[2]

Gibraltar pound
ISO 4217
CodeGIP (numeric: 292)
Subunit0.01
Unit
PluralPounds
Symbol£‎
Denominations
Subunit
 1⁄100Penny
Plural
 PennyPence
Symbol
 Pennyp
Banknotes
 Freq. used£5, £10, £20, £50
 Rarely used£100
Coins1p, 2p, 5p, 10p, 20p, 50p,
£1, £2, £5
Demographics
Official user(s) Gibraltar (alongside sterling)
Unofficial user(s) La Línea, Spain (local businesses)[1]
Issuance
GovernmentGovernment of Gibraltar
 Websitewww.gibraltar.gov.gi
Valuation
Inflation2.0% (2013 est.)
 Source[1]
Pegged withsterling at par

History

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Main article: Gibraltar real

Until 1872, the currency situation in Gibraltar was complicated, with a system based on the real being employed which encompassed British, Spanish and Gibraltarian coins. From 1825, the real (actually the Spanish real de plata) was tied to the pound at the rate of 1 Spanish dollar to 4 shillings 4 pence (equivalent to 21.67 pence today). In 1872, however, the Spanish currency became the sole legal tender in Gibraltar.[3] In 1898, the Spanish–American War made the Spanish peseta drop alarmingly and the pound was introduced as the sole currency of Gibraltar, initially in the form of British coins and banknotes.

In 1898, sterling coin was made sole legal tender, although the Spanish peseta continued in circulation until the Spanish Civil War.[3] Since 1927, Gibraltar has issued its own banknotes and, since 1988, its own coins. Gibraltar decimalised in 1971 at the same time as the UK, replacing the system of 1 pound = 20 shillings = 240 pence with one of 1 pound = 100 (new) pence.

Relationship with the British pound

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The since repealed Currency Notes Act 1934,[4] conferred on the Government of Gibraltar the right to print its own notes.

Notes issued are either backed by Bank of England notes at a rate of one to one, or can be backed by securities issued by the Government of Gibraltar.[5] Although Gibraltar notes are denominated in "pounds sterling", they are not legal tender anywhere in the United Kingdom. Gibraltar's coins are the same weight, size and metal as British coins, although the designs are different, and they are occasionally found in circulation across Britain.

Under the Currency Notes Act 2011[5] the notes and coins issued by the Government of Gibraltar are legal tender and current coin within Gibraltar. British coins and Bank of England notes also circulate in Gibraltar and are universally accepted and interchangeable with Gibraltarian issues.[6]

Coins

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1 pound
  
Obverse Reverse

In 1988, coins in denominations of 1, 2, 5, 10, 20 and 50 pence and 1 pound were introduced which bore specific designs for and the name of Gibraltar. They were the same sizes and compositions as the corresponding British coins, with 2-pound coins introduced in 1999. A new coin of 5 pounds was issued in 2010 with the inscription "Elizabeth II · Queen of Gibraltar".[7] This issue caused controversy in Spain, where the title of King of Gibraltar historically corresponds to the Crown of Castile.[8]

Depiction of Gibraltar coinage | Reverse side
£0.01 £0.02 £0.05
 
 
 
Barbary partridge
Europa Point Lighthouse
Barbary macaque and
Gibraltar candytuft
£0.10 £0.20 £0.50
 
 
 
Europort
Our Lady of Europe
Bottlenose dolphins
£1.00 £2.00
 
 
Fortress and Key
Pillars of Hercules

The £2 coin has featured a new design every year since its introduction, as it depicts each of the 12 Labours of Hercules.

Tercentenary edition

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In 2004 the Government of Gibraltar minted a new edition of its coins to commemorate the tercentenary of British Gibraltar (1704–2004).

£0.01 £0.02 £0.05
 
 
 
Barbary macaque
Keys of Gibraltar
Constitution Order (1969)
£0.10 £0.20 £0.50
 
 
 
Operation Torch (1942)
Discovery of Neanderthal
skull in Gibraltar (1848)
Battle of Trafalgar (1805)
£1.00 £2.00
 
 
Great Siege of Gibraltar
(1779–1783)
Capture of Gibraltar
(1704)

2005 series

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In 2005, the Government of Gibraltar issued a new series of coins featuring the designs of the Tercentenary issues, being placed on different denominations. A £5 coin was issued for this series, depicting the Rock of Gibraltar.

Third series of Gibraltar coinage | Reverse side
£0.01 £0.02 £0.05
 
 
 
Constitution Order (1969)
Operation Torch (1942)
Barbary ape
£0.10 £0.20 £0.50
 
 
 
The Great Siege (1779–1783)
The Keys of Gibraltar
Our Lady of Europe
£1.00 £2.00 £5.00
 
 
 
Discovery of the Neanderthal Skull in Gibraltar (1848)
Battle of Trafalgar (1805)
Rock of Gibraltar
Fourth series of Gibraltar coinage | Reverse side
£0.01 £0.02 £0.05
 
 
 
Coat of arms of Gibraltar with inscription "Fiftieth Anniversary of the Referendum"
Coat of arms of Gibraltar with inscription "Fiftieth Anniversary of the Referendum"
Coat of arms of Gibraltar with inscription "Fiftieth Anniversary of the Referendum"
£0.10 £0.20 £0.50
 
 
 
Coat of arms of Gibraltar with inscription "Fiftieth Anniversary of the Referendum" (1779–1783)
Coat of arms of Gibraltar with inscription "Fiftieth Anniversary of the Referendum"
Coat of arms of Gibraltar with inscription "Fiftieth Anniversary of the Referendum"
£1.00
 
 
Coat of arms of Gibraltar with inscription "Fiftieth Anniversary of the Referendum" (1848)
Seventh series of Gibraltar coinage | Reverse side
£0.01 £0.02 £0.05
 
 
 
Commonwealth Park
Small Boats Marina
Windsor Bridge
£0.10 £0.20 £0.50
 
 
 
Barbary Patridge
Dolphins
Skywalk
£2.00
 
Sandy Bay

Banknotes

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At the outbreak of the First World War, Gibraltar was forced to issue banknotes to prevent paying out sterling or gold. These notes were issued under emergency wartime legislation, Ordinance 10 of 1914. At first, the typeset notes were signed by hand by Treasurer Greenwood, though he later used stamps. The notes bore the embossed stamp of the Anglo-Egyptian Bank Ltd. and circulated alongside British Territory notes.[9] The 1914 notes were issued in denominations of 2/-, 10/-, £1, £5 and £50. The 2/- and £50 notes were not continued when a new series of notes was introduced in 1927. The 10/- note was replaced by the 50p coin during the process of decimalization. In 1975, £10 and £20 notes were introduced, followed by £50 in 1986. The £1 note was discontinued in 1988. In 1995, a new series of notes was introduced which, for the first time, bore the words "pounds sterling" rather than just "pounds". The government of Gibraltar introduced a new series of banknotes beginning with the £10 and £50 notes issued on July 8, 2010. On May 11, 2011, the £5, £20 and £100 notes were issued.[10] In 2021, the government of Gibraltar introduced a new series of banknotes in a reduced size, closely matching that of the banknotes of the Bank of England. The first note, the £5 was issued into circulation in 2021.

Circulating banknotes (2010-2011 Issue)
Image Denomination Dimensions Dominant colour Description
Obverse Reverse Obverse Reverse
£5 133 × 70 mm Green Queen Elizabeth II,
Coat of Arms of Castle with Key		 Upper Ward and Tower of Homage of the Moorish castle
£10 141 × 75 mm Blue Queen Elizabeth II,
Coat of Arms of Castle with Key		 Artist John Trumbull’s “The Sortie Made by the Garrison of Gibraltar” depicting Spanish and English troops fighting and General George Eliott with officers attending to the dying Don José de Barboza during the Great Siege of Gibraltar, 1779–83;
£20 150 × 80 mm Orange Queen Elizabeth II,
Coat of Arms of Castle with Key		 HMS Victory returning to Gibraltar being towed by HMS Neptune after the Battle of Trafalgar
£50 157 × 85 mm Red Queen Elizabeth II,
Coat of Arms of Castle with Key		 Casemates Square buildings
£100 164 × 90 mm Purple Queen Elizabeth II,
Coat of Arms of Castle with Key		 King's Bastion
Circulating banknotes (2021 Issue)
Image Denomination Dimensions Dominant colour Description
Obverse Reverse Obverse Reverse
£5 125 × 65 mm Green Queen Elizabeth II,
Coat of Arms of Castle with Key		 Windsor Bridge
Current GIP exchange rates
From Google Finance: AUD CAD CHF CNY EUR GBP HKD JPY USD GBP JPY USD
From Yahoo! Finance: AUD CAD CHF CNY EUR GBP HKD JPY USD GBP JPY USD
From XE.com: AUD CAD CHF CNY EUR GBP HKD JPY USD GBP JPY USD
From OANDA: AUD CAD CHF CNY EUR GBP HKD JPY USD GBP JPY USD

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Comercios de La Línea aceptan el pago en libras". ELMUNDO. 6 November 2017.
  2. ^ "GIP". Investopedia.com. Retrieved 19 January 2015.
  3. ^ a b Bond, Peter (2003). 300 Years of British Gibraltar 1704-2004. Peter-Tan Publishing Co. p. 89.
  4. ^ Government of Gibraltar (June 1934). "Currency Notes Act" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2008-10-29. Retrieved 2007-08-05.
  5. ^ a b "CURRENCY NOTES ACT 2011" (PDF). Gibraltarlaws.gov.gi. Archived from the original (PDF) on 16 May 2019. Retrieved 3 October 2018.
  6. ^ "Money - Gibraltar (British Overseas Territory) travel advice". GOV.UK. Retrieved 27 June 2023.
  7. ^ 'Queen of Gibraltar' in new coin, Panorama, 7 May 2010
  8. ^ Polémica en ámbitos diplomáticos por la asistencia de la reina doña Sofía a los actos de homenaje a Isabel II: consideran que puede perjudicar los intereses soberanos españoles[permanent dead link], El Confidencial Digital, 6 May 2012
  9. ^ Linzmayer, Owen (2012). "Gibraltar". The Banknote Book. San Francisco, CA – via BanknoteNews.com.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  10. ^ "Gibraltar new note family now complete - Banknote News". Banknotenews.com. Archived from the original on 27 October 2015. Retrieved 3 October 2018.

Bibliography

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