Canada CurrencyThe currency of Canada is called the Canadian Dollar. Each dollar is made up of 100 cents. The Canada currency follows the ISO 4217 standard and it is designated with CAD initials. It is also represented with the C$ sign so that it can be identified from currencies of other countries using the dollar designation. Although Canada is a British commonwealth state, interestingly the first dollars to be used in the country were the Spanish dollars. They were in circulation in c. 1750. Since the accounting standards used the Canadian pound system, this led to a lot of confusion. Around 1750, the Halifax system was introduced and it was adapted by the norther colonies of what makes up Canada today. By the coming of nineteenth century a number of banks in Canada started issuing currency in the Canadian pound or dollars or in some cases even in both denominations. Generally those colonies which had strong relations with United States concentrated on the Canadian dollar while those colonies with a stronger British influence favored the Canadian pound. The number of coins was low as British authorities were not allowing massive minting. In 1871, the Federal Parliament decided that it was high time to take the things in own hands. The Uniform Currency Act was passed and a centralized Canadian currency system was put in place. The Canadian dollar was made applicable as the Canadian currency in the country. After experimenting with different pegging rates against the US dollar, the Canadian dollar started to float in 1952 which continued till 1962 after which it was pegged till 1970. Since 1970, the Canada currency is again floating. Today the Canada's currency is available in both coin and note forms. Canadian paper currency draws its lineage from the British Army Bills which were issued between 1813 to 1815. These bills were valued anywhere between $1 to $400. The Montreal bank printed the first bank notes in 1817. A number of banks issued paper money between 1830s to 1870s but they had a very short lifespan. As late as 1858, the Canadian currency bills were printed in two designations. The coins were designated in both, Dollars and Pounds or Shillings. Each dollar was considered equal to 5 shillings. Dollar wise these notes came in different designations ranging from 1 dollar to 1000 dollars. Post 1858, the policy of dual designation was abandoned in favor of dollar only designated notes. The Canadian coins are the responsibility of Royal Canadian Mint. Canadian dollar is considered to be one of the most stable currencies in the world even though it has been put in the floating system for only 37 years now. If you are looking to be involved in forex trade, you must consider Canada currency as one of your options. |