Bangladeshi taka

Bangladeshi taka
টাকা (Bengali)
৳1000 banknote (obverse)
ISO 4217
Code	BDT
Denominations
Subunit
1/100	poisha
Symbol	৳
poisha	p
Banknotes
Freq. used	৳2, ৳5, ৳10, ৳20, ৳50, ৳100, ৳500 & ৳1000
Rarely used	৳1
Coins
Freq. used	৳5
Rarely used	৳1, ৳2 & 50p
Demographics
User(s)	Bangladesh
Issuance
Central bank	Bangladesh Bank
Website	www.bb.org.bd
Printer	The Security Printing Corporation Bangladesh Ltd.
Website	www.spcbl.org.bd
Mint	The Security Printing Corporation Bangladesh Ltd.
Valuation
Inflation	6.17%
Source	BBS, August 2015[1]

The Bangladeshi taka (Bengali: টাকা, sign: ৳ or Tk, code: BDT) is the currency of the People's Republic of Bangladesh. Issuance of banknotes ৳10 and larger is controlled by Bangladesh Bank, and for the ৳1, ৳2 and ৳5 banknotes, which are the responsibility of the Ministry of Finance of the government of Bangladesh. The most commonly used symbol for the taka is "৳" and "Tk", used on receipts while purchasing goods and services. ৳1 is subdivided into 100 poisha.

Etymology

The word taka is derived from the Sanskrit term tangka (ṭaṃka), which was an ancient denomination for silver coins. In the region of Bengal, the term has always been used to refer to currency. In the 14th century, Ibn Battuta noticed that people in the Bengal Sultanate referred to gold and silver coins as taka instead of dinar.

The word taka in Bangla is also commonly used generically to mean any money, currency, or notes. Thus, colloquially, a person speaking in Bangla may use "taka" to refer to money regardless of what currency it is denominated in. This is also common in the Indian states of West Bengal and Tripura, where the official name of the Indian rupees is "taka" as well.

History

1947–71

After the Partition of Bengal in 1947, in East Bengal, which later became the eastern wing of Pakistan union and was renamed to East Pakistan in 1956, the Pakistani rupee also bore the word taka on official notes and coins. Bangla was one of the two national languages of the Pakistan union between 1956 and 1971 (the other being Urdu in West Pakistan). The Bangladeshi taka came into existence since 1972, a year after the independence of the eastern wing of the union, as the independent nation of Bangladesh.

Prior to the Liberation war in 1971, banknotes of the State Bank of Pakistan circulated throughout Bangladesh, and continued to be used in Bangladesh even after independence for only about three months until the official introduction of the taka on 4 March 1972. During the war, it was an unofficial practice of some Bengali nationalists to protest Pakistani rule by stamping banknotes with "বাংলা দেশ" and "BANGLA DESH" as two words in either Bangla or English. These locally produced stamps are known to exist in several varieties, as are forgeries. On 8 June 1971, the Pakistani government declared that all banknotes bearing such stamps ceased to be legal tender. Furthermore, to prevent looted high-denomination notes from disrupting the Pakistani economy, the government also withdrew the legal tender status of all 100- and 500-rupee notes.^[2]

Some foreign publications mention that there were rubber stamp "BANGLA DESH" overprints on different denominations of Pakistani bank notes during the a.m. period. It may be mentioned that Pakistani postage stamps were rubber-stamped and used all over Bangladesh until 30 March 1973, but Bangladesh Bank or the Ministry of Finance never issued an order to overprint or rubber-stamp Pakistani currency.^[3] It would be interesting to note here, that a counterfeiting gang is active, which uses a "washing system", whereby Tk100 notes are washed with a special kind of liquid, and the numbers are changed to give it the appearance of a Tk500 note.^[4]

Since 1972

Treasury banknotes

• The first treasury notes in 1972 for ৳1 and notes of the Bangladesh Bank for ৳5, ৳10 and ৳100.
• In 1975, banknotes for ৳50 were introduced, followed by ৳500 in 1977 and ৳20 in 1980.
• ৳1 treasury notes were issued until 1993, with ৳2 treasury notes introduced in 1989.
• ৳5 banknotes, previously issued by Bangladesh Bank, is now issued by the Government of Bangladesh.

Banknotes and issues

In 2000, the government issued polymer ৳10 notes as an experiment (similar to the Australian dollar). They proved unpopular, however, and were withdrawn later. At present, the ৳1 and ৳5 notes are gradually being replaced with coins, and in 2008, the government issued ৳1,000 notes.

In 2011, Bangladesh Bank began issuing a new series of banknotes denominated in ৳2, ৳5, ৳100, ৳500, and ৳1000. All are dated 2011 and feature a portrait and watermark of the Father of the Nation, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, along the National Martyr's Monument in Savar at centre front.^[5]

From 2011, the Bangladesh Bank introduced new notes denominated in ৳10, ৳20, and ৳50 on 7 March 2012. The notes bear the portrait of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and the National Martyr's Monument in Savar on the front. On the back of the notes, the ৳10 will picture the Baitul Mukarram mosque, the ৳20 pictures the Shat Gombuj mosque in Bagherat, and the ৳50 notes feature Shilpacharya Jainul Abedin's famous painting "Ploughing."^[6]

Commemorative banknotes

In 2011, Bangladesh Bank also introduced a ৳40 note to commemorate the "40th Victory Anniversary of Bangladesh". The commemorative note features a portrait of the Father of the Nation, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and the National Martyr's Monument in Savar on front, and six armed men on back. Curiously, this note has an electrotype 10 in the watermark, indicating it was likely printed on extra ৳10 banknote paper.^[7]

On 15 February 2012, Bangladesh Bank has introduced a ৳60 note to commemorate "60 years of National Movement". The commemorative note measures 130 by 60 millimetres (5.1 in × 2.4 in) and features the Shaeed Minar (Martyrs' monument) in Dhaka and five men on the back. Like the ৳40 commemorative note, this note has an electrotype 50 in the watermark. It was likely printed on extra ৳50 banknote paper.^[8]

On 26 January 2013, Bangladesh Bank issued a ৳25 note to commemorate the 25th anniversary (silver jubilee) of the Security Printing Corporation (Bangladesh) Ltd. On the front is the National Martyr's Monument in Savar, the designs of the previous series of the Bangladeshi taka notes and its postage stamps, three spotted deer and the magpie robin (doyel) bird. On the reverse is the headquarters of the Security Printing Corporation. Curiously, this note has an electrotype 10 in the watermark, indicating it was likely printed on extra ৳10 banknote paper.^[9]

On 8 July 2013, Bangladesh Bank issued a ৳100 note to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the Bangladesh National Museum. The commemorative note features an 18th-century terra-cotta plaque of a horseman on the front and the Bangladesh National Museum on the back.^[10]

Coins

In 1973, coins were introduced in denominations of 5, 10, 25 and 50 poisha. 1 poisha coins followed in 1974, with ৳1 coins introduced in 1975. The 1, 5 and 10 poisha were struck in aluminium, with the 25 and 50 poisha struck in steel and the ৳1 in copper-nickel. The 5 poisha were square with rounded corners, whilst the 10 poisha were scalloped. Steel ৳5 were introduced in 1994, whilst a steel ৳2 coin followed in 2004.

1 and 5 poisha coins are rarely found in circulation. 10, 25, and 50 poisha coins do not circulate widely. Only the ৳1, ৳2 and ৳5 are regularly found in circulation.

Banknotes

Rarely used banknotes are ৳1, ৳25, ৳40 and ৳60, and most frequently used banknotes in circulation are ৳2, ৳5, ৳10, ৳20, ৳50, ৳100, ৳500 and ৳1000.

Bangladesh Bank has withdrawn the new ৳50 note after a spelling mistake of Shilpacharya Zainul Abedin (জয়নুল আবেদীন) which was identified on the back of the note. The note had just been introduced on 7 March, so it is likely that very few made it into circulation, even though 22.5 million pieces were printed.^[11]

Banknotes before the 2011 Series
Image		Value	Dimensions	Main colours	Description		Date of		Remarks
Obverse	Reverse				Obverse	Reverse	issue	Status
		৳2	100 × 60 mm	Orange and green	Shahid Minar	National bird, the doyel	29 December 1988	No longer in Circulation	To be replaced by 2 taka coins.
		৳5	119 × 64 mm	Cream	Mehrab	Industrial landscape	8 October 2006	No longer in Circulation	first issued on 2 May 1978
		৳10	122 × 59 mm	Pink	Baitul Mukarram	Jatiyo Sangshad Bhaban	Present version 21 September 2006	No longer in Circulation	first issued on 2 June 1972
		৳20	130 × 60 mm	Green	Choto Sona Mosque	4 men washing jute	Present version 13 July 2002	No longer in Circulation	first issued on 20 August 1979
		৳50	130 × 60 mm	Cream, lime green	Jatiyo Sangshad Bhaban	Bagha Mosque	Present version 30 July 2005	No longer in Circulation	first issued on 1 March 1976
		৳100	140 × 62 mm	Blue	National Monument	Jamuna Bridge	Present version 16 July 2006	No longer in Circulation	first issued on 1 September 1972
		৳500	153 × 69 mm	Purple	National Monument	The Supreme Court, Dhaka	Present version 24 October 2004	No longer in Circulation	first issued on 15 December 1976
		৳1000	160 x 72 mm	Reddish pink	Shahid Minar	Curzon Hall	Present version 27 October 2008	No longer in Circulation	first issued on 27 October 2008
		৳10 taka polymer note	152 x 64 mm	Pink	Bangabandhu	Jatiyo Sangshad Bhaban	14 December 2000	Withdrawn	First and Only Polymer note in Bangladesh
These images are to scale at 0.7 pixels per millimetre. For table standards, see the banknote specification table. Source: Bangladesh Bank website

The Bangladesh Bank has started a new series of banknotes, phasing out the older designs for new, more secure ones. All banknotes other than the 1 taka feature a portrait of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman on the obverse along with watermark of Jatiyo Smriti Soudho.^[12]

Bangabandhu Series'2011[13] [14]
Image		Value	Dimensions	Main Colour	Description		Period
Obverse	Reverse				Obverse	Reverse
		৳ 2	100 × 65 mm	Green and Salmon Pink	Sheikh Mujibur Rahman	Shaheed Minar, Dhaka	9 August 2011 – present
		৳ 5	110 × 65 mm	Grey and Salmon Pink		Shona Mosque	9 August 2011 – present
		৳ 10	115 × 65 mm	Pink		Baitul Mukarram	7 March 2012 – present
		৳ 20	120 × 65 mm	Yellow and Green		Sixty Dome Mosque	7 March 2012 – present
		৳ 50	131 × 65 mm	Red and Brown		Zainul Abedin's painting "Ploughing"	7 March 2012 – present
		৳ 100	139 × 65 mm	Blue		Star Mosque	9 August 2011 – present
		৳ 500	147 × 65 mm	Rich Deep Green and Blue		Agriculture in Bangladesh	9 August 2011 – present
		৳ 1000	155 × 65 mm	Purple and Brown		Jatiyo Sangsad Bhaban	9 August 2011 – present
These images are to scale at 0.7 pixels per millimetre. For table standards, see the banknote specification table.

Commemorative notes
Image	Value	Dimensions	Main colours	Description		Date of issue	Date of first issue	Watermark
				Obverse	Reverse
	৳40	122 x 60 mm	Dark red, orange, and green	Bangabandhu; National monument (Savar)	Soldiers	2011	21 December 2011	Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, electrotype 10 denomination and bank logo
	৳60	130 x 60 mm	Yellow, brown, violet, orange, and blue	Shaheed Minar monument	Veterans of the "Language Movement", first Shaheed Minar monument (1952)	2012	15 February 2012	Sheikh Mujibur Rahman on pixelated background, electrotype bank logo and 50
	৳25	123 x 60 mm	Blue, purple and red	National Martyr's Monument in Savar, Bangladeshi taka banknotes and postage stamps, three spotted deer, magpie robin (doyel) bird	Headquarters of the Security Printing Corporation	2013	26 January 2013	Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, electrotype 10 denomination and bank logo
	৳100	140 x 62 mm	Blue and red	18th-century terra-cotta plaque of a horseman	Bangladesh National Museum	2013	9 July 2013	Sheikh Mujibur Rahman on a pixelated background, electrotype 100 denomination and bank logo
These images are to scale at 0.7 pixels per millimeter. For table standards, see the banknote specification table.

Exchange rates

Historic exchange rates

Upon Bangladesh's independence, the value of the Bangladeshi taka was set between ৳7.5 and ৳8.0 to US$1. Except for fiscal year 1978, the taka's value relative to the US dollar declined every year from 1971 through the end of 1987. To help offset this phenomenon, Bangladesh first used the compensatory financing facility of the International Monetary Fund in fiscal year 1974. Despite the increasing need for assistance, the Mujib government was initially unwilling to meet the IMF's conditions on monetary and fiscal policy. By fiscal year 1975, however, the government revised its stance, declaring a devaluation of the taka by 56 percent and agreeing to establishing the Bangladesh Aid Group by the World Bank.^[15]

Between 1980 and 1983, the taka sustained a decline of some 50 percent because of a deterioration in Bangladesh's balance of payments.^[15] Between 1985 and 1987, the taka was adjusted in frequent incremental steps, stabilising again around 12 percent lower in real terms against the US dollar, but at the same time narrowing the difference between the official rate and the preferential secondary rate from 15 percent to 7.5 percent.^[15] Accompanying this structural adjustment was an expansion in trade conducted at the secondary rate, to 53 percent of total exports and 28 percent of total imports.^[15] In mid-1987, the official rate was relatively stable, approaching less than ৳31 to US$1.^[15] In January 2011, USD$1 was equivalent to approximately ৳72,^[16] as of 21 April 2012, US$1 was worth close to ৳82, and as of 9 September 2015 US$1 valued ৳77.

Current exchange rates

See also

• Economy of Bangladesh
• The Security Printing Corporation (Bangladesh) Ltd.

References

External links

• Bangladesh Bank's page on currencies in circulation
• High resolution scans of Bangladeshi currency
• Historical banknotes of Bangladesh