Swazi lilangeni

Swazi lilangeni
1 lilangeni Swazi coins
ISO 4217 code SZL
User(s)  Swaziland (alongside South African rand)
Inflation 4.9%
Source Central Bank of Swaziland, March 2010
Pegged with South African rand at par
Subunit
1/100 cent
Symbol L or E (pl.)
Plural emalangeni
Coins 1, 2, 5, 10, 20, 50 cents, L1, E2, E5
Banknotes E10, E20, E50, E100, E200
Central bank Central Bank of Swaziland
Website www.centralbank.org.sz

The lilangeni (plural: emalangeni, ISO 4217 code: SZL) is the currency of Swaziland and is subdivided into 100 cents. The South African rand is also accepted in Swaziland and it is issued by the Central Bank of Swaziland (in swazi Umntsholi Wemaswati). Similar to the Lesotho loti, there are singular and plural abbreviations, namely L and E, so where one might have an amount L1, it would be E2, E3, or E4.

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History

It was introduced in 1974 at par with the South African rand through the Common Monetary Area, to which it remains tied at a one-to-one exchange rate.

Coins

In 1974, coins for 1, 2, 5, 10, 20 and 50 cents and 1 lilangeni were introduced, with the 1 and 2 cents struck in bronze and the others struck in cupro-nickel. Except for the 1 lilangeni, the coins were not round, with the 1 and 50 cents dodecagonal, the 2 cents square with rounded corners and the 5, 10 and 20 cents scalloped.

The 2 cents was last struck in 1982, whilst, in 1986, round, copper-plated steel 1 cent and nickel-brass 1 lilangeni coins were introduced. These were followed, in 1992, by nickel-plated-steel 5 and 10 cents and nickel-brass-plated-steel 1 lilangeni coins. In 1995, 2 and 5 emalangeni coins were introduced.

The nickel-brass L1 coins have exactly the same dimensions and composition as the British £1 coins introduced three years earlier. As 1 lilangeni is worth about £0.09 (2010), the Swazi coins are sometimes used fraudulently in British vending machines.

Banknotes

In 1974, the Monetary Authority of Swaziland introduced notes in denominations of 1 lilangeni, 2, 5 and 10 emalangeni, with 20 emalangeni notes following in 1978. In 1981, the Central Bank of Swaziland took over paper money production, first issuing notes commemorating the Diamond Jubilee of King Sobhuza II. Between 1982 and 1985, it introduced non-commemorative notes for E2, E5, E10, and E20. The 50 emalangeni notes were introduced in 1990. The E2 and E5 notes were replaced by coins in 1995, whilst 100 and 200 emalangeni notes were introduced in 1996 and 1998, respectively, with the E200 notes commemorating the 30th anniversary of independence.

Current SZL exchange rates
From Google Finance: AUD CAD CHF EUR GBP HKD JPY USD
From Yahoo! Finance: AUD CAD CHF EUR GBP HKD JPY USD
From OzForex: AUD CAD CHF EUR GBP HKD JPY USD
From XE.com: AUD CAD CHF EUR GBP HKD JPY USD
From OANDA.com: AUD CAD CHF EUR GBP HKD JPY USD

See also

References

External links

Preceded by:
South African rand
Ratio: at par
Currency of Swaziland
1974 –
Concurrent with: South African rand (legal tender until 1986, and circulated unofficially thereafter)
Succeeded by:
Current