Czech koruna

Czech koruna
koruna česká  (Czech)
Koruna banknotes 50 Kč coin
ISO 4217
Code	CZK
Number	203
Exponent	2
Denominations
Subunit
1⁄100	haléř (defunct)
Plural	The language(s) of this currency belong(s) to the Slavic languages. There is more than one way to construct plural forms.
Symbol	Kč
haléř (defunct)	h
Banknotes
Freq. used	100, 200, 500, 1000, 2000 Kč
Rarely used	5000 Kč
Coins	1, 2, 5, 10, 20, 50 Kč
Demographics
User(s)	Czech Republic
Issuance
Central bank	Czech National Bank
Website	www.cnb.cz
Mint	Česká mincovna
Website	ceskamincovna.cz
Valuation
Inflation	2.1%
Source	Czech Statistical Office, February 2021
Method	CPI

The koruna (sign: Kč; code: CZK, Czech: koruna česká) is the currency of the Czech Republic since 1993. The koruna is one of European Union's 11 currencies, and the Czech Republic is legally bound to adopt the euro currency in the future.

The official name in Czech is koruna česká (plural koruny české, though the zero-grade genitive plural form korun českých is used on banknotes and coins of value 5 Kč or higher). The ISO 4217 code is CZK and the local acronym is Kč, which is placed after the numeric value (e.g., "50 Kč") or sometimes before it (as is seen on the 10-koruna coin). One koruna equals 100 haléřů (abbreviated as "h", singular: haléř, nominative plural: haléře, genitive plural: haléřů – used with numbers higher or equal to 5 – e.g. 3 haléře, 8 haléřů), but haléře have been withdrawn, and the smallest unit of physical currency is 1 Kč. Despite its withdrawal haléře are still present in prices of various products, but are rounded to koruna at checkout.

History[]

In 1892, the Austro-Hungarian krone replaced the gulden, at the rate of one gulden equaling two kronen (which is also the reason why the 10-koruna coin had been nicknamed pětka or "the five" by the Czechs even long after the empire fell apart). The name "krone" was invented by the emperor, Franz Joseph I of Austria. After Austria-Hungary dissolved in 1918, the only successor state that kept the name of the currency, the koruna, was Czechoslovakia. In the late 1920s, the Czechoslovak koruna was the hardest currency in Europe. During the Second World War, the currency on the occupied Czech territory was artificially weakened. The Czechoslovak koruna was restored after the war. It underwent a highly controversial monetary reform in 1953.

The Czech koruna replaced the Czechoslovak koruna when it was introduced in 1993 after the dissolution of Czechoslovakia. It first consisted of overstamped 20-, 50-, 100-, 500-, and 1000-Czechoslovak koruna banknotes, but a new series was properly introduced in 1993.

In November 2013, the Czech National Bank (ČNB) intervened to weaken the exchange rate of the koruna through a monetary stimulus to stop the currency from excessive strengthening.^[1] This was meant to support the Czech economy, mainly focused on export, but people were unhappy about this step because it was set up before Christmas, which led to raising the prices of imported goods. In late 2016, the ČNB stated that the return to conventional monetary policy was planned for mid-2017.^[2][3] After higher-than-expected inflation and other figures, the national bank removed the cap at a special monetary meeting on April 6, 2017. The koruna avoided significant volatility and City Index Group stated: "If you want to drop a currency peg, then the ČNB can show you how to do it".^[4]

Euro adoption discussion[]

The Czech Republic planned to adopt the euro in 2010, but its government suspended that plan indefinitely in 2005.^[5] Although the country is economically well positioned to adopt the euro, there is considerable opposition to the move within the Czech Republic.^[6] According to a survey conducted in April 2014, only 16% of the Czech population was in favour of replacing the koruna with the euro.^[7] As reported by an April 2018 survey by CVVM (Public Opinion Research Center), this value has remained at nearly identical levels over the past four years, with only 20% of the Czech population above 15 years old supporting euro adoption.^[8]

Coins[]

The coins of the Czech koruna increase in size and weight with value.

In 1993, coins were introduced in denominations of 10, 20 and 50 haléřů, 1, 2, 5, 10, 20 and 50 korun. The 10- and 20-haléřů coins were taken out of circulation by 31 October 2003 and the 50-haléřů coins by 31 August 2008 due to their diminishing purchasing power and circulation.^[9] However, financial amounts are still written with the accuracy of 1-haléř (CZK 0.01); prices in retail shops are usually multiples of CZK 0.10. When transactions are made, the amount is rounded to the nearest integer.

In 2000, the 10- and 20-korun coins were minted with different obverses to commemorate the millennium. In 1993 and 1994, coins were minted in Winnipeg and Hamburg, then in the Czech Republic. The 10- and 50-korun coins were designed by  [cs] (1934–2007).

Since 1997, sets for collectors are also issued yearly with proof-quality coins. Also, a tradition exists of issuing commemorative coins – including silver and gold coins – for numismatic purposes.

For a complete listing, see Commemorative coins of the Czech Republic.

Circulation coins[10]
Image	Value	Technical parameters				Description			Date of
		Diameter	Thickness	Mass	Composition	Edge	Obverse	Reverse	first minting	issue	withdrawal
	10 h	15.5 mm	1.7 mm	0.6 g	99% aluminium 1% magnesium	Plain	"ČESKÁ REPUBLIKA", the Czech lion, year of minting	Value, stylized river	1993	1993	2003
	20 h	17 mm		0.74 g		Milled		Value, linden leaf	1993	1993	2003
	50 h	19 mm		0.9 g		Alternately plain and milled		Value	1993	1993	2008
	1 Kč	20 mm	1.85 mm	3.6 g	Nickel-plated steel	Milled		Value, St. Wenceslas crown	1993	1993	Current
	2 Kč	21.5 mm, 11-sided		3.7 g		Rounded, plain		Value, a Great Moravian button-jewel	1993	1993	Current
	5 Kč	23 mm		4.8 g		Plain		Value, Charles Bridge, Vltava, linden leaf	1993	1993	Current
	10 Kč	24.5 mm	2.55 mm	7.62 g	Copper-plated steel	Milled		Value, Cathedral of St. Peter and Paul at Petrov monument in Brno	1993	1993	Current
	20 Kč	26 mm, 13-sided		8.43 g	Brass-plated steel	Rounded, plain		Value, the St. Wenceslas monument on Wenceslas Square, inscription from the monument: "SVATÝ VÁCLAVE NEDEJ ZAHYNOUT NÁM I BUDOUCÍM"	1993	1993	Current
	50 Kč	27.5 mm center: 17 mm		9.7 g	Outer ring: Copper-plated steel Center plug: Brass-plated steel	Plain		"PRAGA MATER URBIUM" (Prague, the Mother of Towns), view of Prague	1993	1993	Current

Banknotes[]

The first Czech banknotes were issued on 8 February 1993 and consisted of Czechoslovak notes with adhesive stamps affixed to them. Only the 100-, 500- and 1,000-korun notes were overstamped, the lower denominations circulated unchanged during this transitional period. Each stamp bears a Roman and Arabic numeral identifying the denomination of the banknote to which it is affixed (C and 100, D and 500, M and 1,000). Subsequent issues of the 1,000-korun note replaced the adhesive stamp with a printed image of same.^[11]

A newly designed series of banknotes in denominations of 20-, 50-, 100-, 200-, 500-, 1,000 and 5,000-korun were introduced later in 1993 and are still in use at present – except for 20, 50 and the first versions of 1,000 and 5,000 korun notes, since the security features of 1,000 and 5,000 notes were upgraded in the subsequent issues (The 2,000 korun note, which was introduced in 1996, is still valid in all versions, with and without the new security features). These banknotes feature renowned Czech persons on the obverse and abstract compositions on the reverse. Modern protective elements can be found on all banknotes.

In 2007, the Czech National Bank started issuing new upgraded banknotes with upgraded security features. These include a new color-shifting security thread, additional watermarks and EURion constellations. The first denomination to be issued with the new features was the 2000-korun, followed by the 1000-korun in 2008, the 500 and 5000-korun in 2009 and finally ending with the issuance of the 100 and 200-korun notes in 2018.

Stamped banknotes[]

Image		Value	Dimensions	Main colour	Language	Description		Date of
Obverse	Reverse					Obverse	Reverse	printing	issue	withdrawal
Czechoslovak banknotes
		10 Kčs	133 × 67 mm	Brown	Slovak	Pavol Országh-Hviezdoslav	Orava scene	1986	7 February 1993	31 July 1993
		20 Kčs	138 × 67 mm	Blue	Czech	Comenius	Illustration related to culture and education	1988	7 February 1993	31 July 1993
		50 Kčs	143 × 67 mm	Red	Slovak	Ľudovít Štúr	View of Bratislava with the castle (from the restaurant on the top of the pylon of the Nový Most)	1987	7 February 1993	31 July 1993
Overstamped Czechoslovak banknotes
		100 Kč	165 × 81 mm	Green	Czech	Peasant couple	View of Prague with the castle and the Charles Bridge	1961	7 February 1993	31 August 1993
		500 Kč	153 × 67 mm	Brown	Slovak	Partisans of the SNP 1944	Devín Castle	1973	7 February 1993	31 August 1993
		1,000 Kč	158 × 67 mm	Blue	Czech	Bedřich Smetana	View of the Vltava at Vyšehrad	1985	7 February 1993	31 August 1993

Original Czech banknotes[]

The Greater coat of arms of the Czech Republic can be found on the reverse side of all denominations.

First original (second 1993) series

Image		Value	Dimensions	Main colour	Description		Date of
Obverse	Reverse				Obverse	Reverse	printing	issue	withdrawal	lapse
		20 Kč	128 × 64 mm	Blue	Přemysl Otakar I	Ottokar's Crown and the seal of Golden Bull of Sicily	1994	20 April 1994	31 August 2008	31 August 2014[12]
		50 Kč	134 × 64 mm	Red	Saint Agnes of Bohemia	St. Salvator's Church ceiling (part of Convent of St. Agnes of Bohemia in Prague) and ornamental letter A	1993	6 October 1993	31 January 2007	31 March 2017[13]
							1994	21 December 1994	31 March 2011
							1997	10 September 1997	31 March 2011
		100 Kč	140 × 69 mm	Green and pink	Charles IV	Seal of Charles University	1993	30 June 1993	31 January 2007	1 July 2022[14]
							1995	21 June 1995	current
							1997	15 October 1997	current
		200 Kč	146 × 69 mm	Brown and orange	John Amos Comenius	Orbis Pictus, an adult's hand passing to a child's hand	1993	8 February 1993	31 January 2007	1 July 2022[14]
							1996	14 August 1996	current
							1998	6 January 1999	current
		500 Kč	152 × 69 mm	Brown and pink	Božena Němcová	Laureate woman symbolizing all woman characters in Němcová's books	1993	21 July 1993	31 January 2007	1 July 2022[14]
							1995	27 December 1995	current
							1997	18 March 1998	current
		1,000 Kč	158 × 74 mm	Violet	František Palacký	Eagle spread its wings over the Archbishop's Castle in Kroměříž	1993	12 May 1993	30 June 2001	1 July 2022[14]
							1996	6 December 1996	current
		2,000 Kč	164 × 74 mm	Green	Emmy Destinn	Euterpe and musical motifs like violin	1996	1 October 1996	current
							1999	1 December 1999	current
		5,000 Kč	170 × 74 mm	Dark blue and violet	Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk	Gothic and Baroque buildings in Prague, in centre dominating St. Vitus Cathedral	1993	15 December 1993	30 June 2001	1 July 2022[14]
							1999	8 September 1999	current

Upgraded banknotes[]

1993 (2007-2018) series

Image		Value	Dimensions	Main colour	Description		Date of
Obverse	Reverse				Obverse	Reverse	printing	issue	withdrawal	lapse
		100 Kč	140 × 69 mm	Green and pink	Charles IV	Seal of Charles University	2018	5 September 2018[15]	current
		200 Kč	146 × 69 mm	Brown and orange	John Amos Comenius	Orbis Pictus, an adult's hand passing to a child's hand	2018	5 September 2018[15]
		500 Kč	152 × 69 mm	Brown and pink	Božena Němcová	Laureate woman symbolizing all woman characters in Němcová's books	2009	1 April 2009[16]
		1,000 Kč	158 × 74 mm	Violet	František Palacký	Eagle spread its wings over the Archbishop's Castle in Kroměříž	2008	1 April 2008[17]
		2,000 Kč	164 × 74 mm	Green	Emmy Destinn	Euterpe and musical motifs like violin	2007	2 July 2007[18]
		5,000 Kč	170 × 74 mm	Dark blue and violet	Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk	Gothic and Baroque buildings in Prague, in centre dominating St. Vitus Cathedral	2009	1 December 2009[19]

Commemorative banknotes[]

Commemorative banknote series^[20]

Image		Value	Dimensions	Main colour	Description		Date of
Obverse	Reverse				Obverse	Reverse	printing	issue	withdrawal	lapse
		100 Kč	150 × 65 mm	Gold	Alois Rašín	Czech National Bank	2019	31 January 2019		TBD
		100 Kč	140 × 69 mm	Green and pink	Charles IV, overprint on watermark area	Seal of Charles University	2019	30 January 2019

For the 100th anniversary of the Czechoslovak koruna, a new banknote will be created, featuring the face of Czech politician Alois Rašín. There is also an overprint on the normal 100 Korun note as second commemorative note.

Exchange rates[]

Historic rates[]

EUR–CZK exchange rate since 1999 The currency was on a record exchange rate run in 2008.[21] Most traded currencies (since 31 December 2008): Year USD EUR GBP CHF JPY 2008 19.346 26.930 28.270 18.132 0.21348 2009 18.368 26.465 29.798 17.837 0.19875 2010 18.751 25.060 29.108 20.043 0.23058 2011 19.940 25.800 30.886 21.220 0.25754 2012 19.055 25.140 30.812 20.831 0.22130 2013 19.894 27.425 32.911 22.344 0.18957 2014 22.834 27.725 35.591 23.058 0.19090 2015 24.824 27.025 36.822 24.930 0.20619 2016 25.639 27.020 31.586 25.166 0.21907 2017 21.291 25.540 28.786 21.824 0.18915 2018 22.466 25.725 28.762 22.827 0.20447 2019 22.621 25.410 29.866 23.416 0.20844 Source: Czech National Bank exchange rates [22]

Current rates[]

Current CZK 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 XE.com:	AUD CAD CHF EUR GBP HKD JPY USD
From OANDA:	AUD CAD CHF EUR GBP HKD JPY USD
From fxtop.com:	AUD CAD CHF EUR GBP HKD JPY USD

See also[]

• Bohemian and Moravian koruna
• Czechoslovak koruna
• Slovak koruna
• Commemorative coins of the Czech Republic
• Czech Republic and the euro
• Economy of the Czech Republic

References[]

1. ^ "Czech Koruna Approaches Euro Cap: Intervention Policy Explained". 8 July 2015. Archived from the original on 15 December 2017. Retrieved 4 May 2018 – via www.bloomberg.com.
2. ^ "Czech Central Bank Zeros In on Ending Koruna Cap in Mid-2017". 29 September 2016. Archived from the original on 19 January 2018. Retrieved 4 May 2018 – via www.bloomberg.com.
3. ^ "Czech Central Banker Quashes Bets on Earlier Koruna Cap Exit". 13 September 2016. Archived from the original on 17 February 2018. Retrieved 4 May 2018 – via www.bloomberg.com.
4. ^ "Czechs Trigger Long-Awaited Koruna Float Without Swiss Shock". 6 April 2017. Archived from the original on 18 June 2017. Retrieved 4 May 2018 – via www.bloomberg.com.
5. ^ "Finance Ministry backtracks on joining the Euro by 2012". Radio Praha. Archived from the original on 7 February 2009. Retrieved 22 December 2008.
6. ^ "Euros in the wallets of the Slovaks, but who will be next?" (Press release). Sparkasse.at. 5 August 2008. Archived from the original on 4 September 2006. Retrieved 21 December 2008.
7. ^ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 13 August 2014. Retrieved 11 August 2014.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
8. ^ "Archived copy" (PDF). Retrieved 28 November 2018.
9. ^ "The CNB decides 50-heller coins will cease to be legal tender". Archived from the original on 14 April 2008. Retrieved 20 January 2008.
10. ^ Czech national bank. Available at: "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 5 September 2013. Retrieved 28 August 2013.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
11. ^ "Platidla ČR (1993–20..) – Papírová platidla, bankovky". Papirovaplatidla.cz. Archived from the original on 16 November 2014. Retrieved 19 August 2014.
12. ^ "ČNB". www.cnb.cz. Archived from the original on 4 May 2018. Retrieved 4 May 2018.
13. ^ "Czech Republic to replace 50-koruna note with coin 01.04.2011 - Banknote News". banknotenews.com. Archived from the original on 25 August 2014. Retrieved 4 May 2018.
14. ^ Jump up to: ^{a b c d e} "ČNB za rok ukončí platnost starších bankovek 100 Kč – 2 000 Kč s úzkým stříbřitým proužkem, staré postupně mizí z oběhu (The CNB will terminate the validity of older CZK 100 - CZK 2,000 banknotes with a narrow silver stripe in a year, the old ones will gradually disappear from circulation)". cnb.cz. Retrieved 5 July 2021.
15. ^ Jump up to: ^{a b} "CNB issues new versions of the CZK 100 and 200 banknotes". www.cnb.cz. Retrieved 2 April 2021.
16. ^ "The CNB puts into circulation a new version of the CZK 500 banknote". www.cnb.cz. Retrieved 2 April 2021.
17. ^ "The CNB puts into circulation a new version of the CZK 1000 banknote". www.cnb.cz. Retrieved 2 April 2021.
18. ^ "The CNB puts into circulation a new version of the CZK 2000 banknote". www.cnb.cz. Retrieved 2 April 2021.
19. ^ "The CNB puts into circulation a new version of the CZK 5000 banknote". www.cnb.cz. Retrieved 2 April 2021.
20. ^ "Rašín Alois". zlate-mince.cz. Zlatemince.cz. Retrieved 6 July 2018.
21. ^ "Czech crown extends record run, eyes on CPI". Forbes. 7 July 2008. Archived from the original on 4 June 2011.
22. ^ Czech national bank exchange rate fixing. Available at: "Exchange rates – yearly history". Retrieved 20 February 2020.

External links[]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Money of the Czech Republic.

• Czech banknotes, Czech National Bank
• Czech coins, Czech National Bank
• Czech banknotes (catalog, gallery and other details, history)
• Heiko Otto (ed.). "Historical and current banknotes of the Czech Republic" (in English, German, and French). Retrieved 6 June 2019.
• Heiko Otto (ed.). "Historical banknotes of Czechoslovakia" (in English, German, and French). Retrieved 6 June 2019.