Currency of Cambodia: history, exchange procedure, photo

2024 Author: Howard Calhoun | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 10:16

Cambodia is an original country that attracts more and more tourists. Paying for a hotel room, buying food or restaurant bills, spending on entertainment can be made in a given state using its national currency. What are its features? What are the alternatives?

General information

To begin with, let's look at some remarkable facts about cash payments in the state in question. The currency of Cambodia is the riel (in the international banking classification it is designated as KHR). Corresponds to 100 sen.

For the first time, this national currency of Cambodia was put into circulation in 1955, replacing the Indochinese piastre. During the period of Khmer Rouge rule (in 1975-1980), operations using the national currency were not actually carried out in the state. Foreign currencies were used in economic settlements.

But later the situation changed. In 1980, the riel was reintroduced into circulation. However, in practice, Cambodians still prefer to make payments in dollars. The currency of Cambodia is significantly inferior to it in popularity and is used mainly for exchange and small transactions.

BanknotesCambodian currency

One way or another, in the economy of the state, the national currency circulates with a certain degree of intensity. In trade, riel banknotes are used in various denominations: from 50 to 100,000 KHR. In the state of Cambodia, during various periods of its economic development, high inflation was observed. In this regard, banknotes with a face value of up to 500 KHR are extremely rare in circulation, since it can be problematic to set the real prices for goods and services in them.

What does the currency of Cambodia look like? Photos of the riel banknote are presented in the article.

The inscriptions on the banknotes are mainly Khmer phrases, however, their denomination is indicated by Arabic numerals, as well as Latin letters.

It should be noted that coins are rare in Cambodia, banknotes are predominantly common. However, metal riels are also available.

The practice of financial calculations

As we noted above, the currency of Cambodia (riel) is significantly inferior in popularity to the US dollar. This is due not least to the processes of inflation in certain periods of the country's economic development. Prices in most shops, hotels, catering outlets are indicated in American currency. The same can be said about trading in private markets.

It is worth noting that the change from the purchase of goods paid in dollars, the Cambodian seller can issue in local currency. At the same time, its course, as some travelers note, in many cases may not be toobeneficial. Therefore, in case of small purchases, it is advisable to have dollars with you at least in bills of 1 or 5 USD. In this case, it will be less likely that the seller will issue change in the national currency of the state.

Where can I buy the national currency of Cambodia

So, what is the currency in Cambodia, we now know. But where can I buy it?

In principle, such a need may not arise in most financial legal relations on the territory of the state. As we noted above, in Cambodia, the dollar may well be used as the main currency. However, if the traveler has, for example, Chinese yuan in his hands, then they will have to be exchanged for the same dollars or already for riels. For these purposes, it is advisable to contact official exchange offices at banks in large cities.

It is worth noting that the currency of Cambodia is not subject to export from the state. Therefore, it makes little sense to stock up on riels in case of future travels. Moreover, due to inflationary processes, the purchasing power of this currency may decrease somewhat. Although, it should be noted, the national government of Cambodia has recently paid considerable attention to the issue of sustainability of the purchasing power of the riel. Thus, in particular, a fixed exchange rate of the national currency of the state against the dollar was fixed. The financial authorities of Cambodia have also achieved some success in solving problems with inflation.

Note that the use of plastic cards is not very common in Cambodia. Therefore, it is more likely for a tourist to carry out exchange transactionseverything, anyway. But at the same time, we should take into account the specifics of using the local currency that we have considered and correctly distribute our own finances in terms of their conversion into dollars or riels.