Theriel (/riˈɛl/;Khmer:រៀល,romanized: riĕl[riəl];sign: ៛;code:KHR) is thecurrency ofCambodia. There have been two distinct riel, the first issued between 1953 and May 1975. Between 1975 and 1980, the country had no monetary system. A second currency, also named "riel", has been issued since 20 March 1980. Since the late 1990s, the riel has had an unofficial fixedexchange rate of 4,100:1 with theUnited States dollar, Cambodia's secondde facto currency for commercial transactions.[1]
Popular belief suggests that the name of the currency comes from theMekong river fishriĕl ("small fish" in Khmer). It is more likely that it derives from the high-silver contentSpanish-American dollar, whose value is eightreales, a coin widely used for international trade in Asia and the Americas from the 16th to 19th centuries.[2]
Dollarization started in the 1980s and continued to the early 90s when theUnited Nations contributed humanitarian aid,[3] refugees began sending remittances home, and inflation as high as 177% per year eroded confidence in the riel.[citation needed] From 1991 to 1993, theUnited Nations Transitional Authority in Cambodia stationed 22,000 personnel throughout Cambodia, whose spending represented a large part of the Cambodian economy.[citation needed]
While the riel remains in common use in the provinces, the major cities and tourist areas heavily use theU.S. dollar. The latter is dispensed in ATMs, accepted in virtually all purchases, and USD quotations are required to price hotel rooms, airline tickets and significant financial transactions. The exchange rate of 4,000 KHR/US$ is widely known and employed frequently in retail trade, with riel paid out for change in fractions of a dollar.[1]
In June 2020, theNational Bank of Cambodia announced the phaseout from wide circulation of small U.S. dollar banknotes of$1,$2 and$5.[4] This is aimed at reducing the cost of keeping the smaller US notes in circulation, as well as increasing the use of the riel in lieu of these notes.[4] No fees were to be charged to collect these small notes before 31 August 2020, but after that date banks were expected to incur costs of transporting these notes.[4]
Prior to the year 1875, thetical was the currency ofCambodia as well asSiam andLaos. However, as a result ofFrench intervention in the region, the tical in Cambodia was replaced in 1875 by theCambodian franc.
Thefranc was the currency ofCambodia between 1875 and 1885. It was equal to theFrench franc and was similarly subdivided into 100 centimes. It replaced thetical and was replaced by thepiastre.
The riel was at first subdivided into 100centimes (abbreviated to cent. on the coins) but this changed in 1959 to 100sen (សេន). For the first few years, the riel and piastre circulated alongside each other. The first riel banknotes were also denominated in piastres.
Coins: The 10, 20 and 50 centimes of 1953 and sen coins were minted inaluminum and were the same size as the corresponding att and xu (su) coins of Laos and South Vietnam (though without the holes in the Lao coins). A 1 riel coin about the size of aU.S. nickel was to be issued in 1970, as part of theUnited Nations'Food and Agriculture Organization's coin program, but was not released, perhaps due to the overthrow of the government ofNorodom Sihanouk byLon Nol.[7]
After the Vietnamese attacked Khmer Rouge in 1978, the riel was re-established as Cambodia's national currency on 20 March 1980, initially at a value of 4 riels = 1U.S. dollar. It is subdivided into 10 kaks (from theHokkien角kak) or 100 sens (from theFrenchcent). Because there was no money for it to replace and a severely disrupted economy, the central government gave away the new money to the populace in order to encourage its use. Near the same time, the United Nations gave humanitarian aid to Cambodia in U.S. dollars, and placed people in Cambodia to get it started, and the populace prefer the more stable U.S. dollar. As the supply of riels grew rapidly during the early 1990s, the riel devalued from 4 riels to 1 dollar in 1980 to a rate of around 4000 KHR/USD in the 2000s and around 4100 KHR/USD in the 2020s, where it has remained stable ever since.
Preah Thineang Chan Chhaya (Moonlight Pavilion) of the Royal Palace in Phnom Penh, Paul Ducuing's statue of King Sisowath at the National Museum of Cambodia
The first coins were 5 sen pieces, minted in 1979 and made of aluminum. No more coins were minted until 1994, when denominations of 50, 100, 200 and 500 riels were introduced. However, these are rarely found in circulation.[10]
Succeeded by: none Location:Kampuchea Reason: The Khmer Rouge attempted to implement the Marxist vision of a money-less society Note: The Khmer Rouge did print a series of riel. Some sources say they were never issued. Some say they were issued one month before they were abolished.
Second riel
Preceded by: Vietnamese đồng Reason: reintroduction of a national currency Ratio: 1 riel = 3 đồng = 0.25 U.S. dollar = 1 kg rice
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