South African Rand

About The South African Rand: The Strong Currency of South Africa

Quick Facts About the South African Rand Notes

Country of Origin	South Africa
Symbol	R
Currency Code	ZAR
Nick Names
Minor units	Cent
Denominations (Banknotes)	R10, R20, R50, R100 and R200
Motto	‘Ex Unitate Vires’ which means ‘unity is Strength’
Identification Feature	The 200 rand note of the sixth series has the image of leopards on the obverse side.
Issuing Bank	South African Reserve Bank
In Circulation Since	February 14, 1961
INR Exchange Rate	4.8201 🔄

South Africa's official unit of money is called the rand. The symbol for the rand is the letter R, and one rand is equal to one hundred cents. The value of the rand remained essentially unchanged in comparison to that of the US dollar from the time it was first introduced in February 1961 until the end of apartheid in 1994. The value of the rand has significantly decreased since then as a result of the increased integration of the South African economy into global markets. Several of the neighbouring nations have decided to peg their currencies to the rand in order to be more competitive. Because gold was South Africa's most important commodity at the time, its currency, the rand, had its value initially set relative to the price of gold. The South African rand symbol is R.

The South African rand rate today is INR (4.8201 🔄) . Please note that the South African rand price keeps fluctuating.

History of the South African Rand

The South African rand (ZAR) is the country's official currency. It was first introduced in February 1961, just a few months before the founding of the Republic of South Africa, and it has been in circulation ever since.

When the rand was first introduced as the official currency of South Africa, one pound of South African currency was equivalent to two rand. Until the early 1970s, its value was always around R1.5 when measured against the dollar (USD). However, due to the fact that the value of the rand has declined over the course of the decades that have passed since then, it is currently more expensive to exchange one rand for one single US dollar.

In the year 1990, one rand could be traded in for approximately $2.55 in US dollars; however, by the year 1999, the rate of exchange had increased to $6.14. The rand was chosen to be the official currency of South Africa in 1961, barely three months before the country transitioned from a union to a republic.

In the year 1956, a Decimal Coinage Commission was founded with the purpose of examining the prospect of doing away with the pound, the shilling, and the penny. On August 8, 1958, it presented its report and recommendations to the appropriate parties. Because one rand was equivalent to one pound, or ten shillings, the rand became the de facto legal money in South Africa, thereby replacing the pound. Decimal Dan, also known as "the rand-cent person," was developed to serve as the official mascot of the government (known in Afrikaans as Daan Desimaal). In addition to this, a catchy radio jingle was broadcast to inform people about the new currency.

The 15th of March in 1982 was the first day that the dollar was worth more than the rand. After that, its value shifted since the government of South Africa implemented a variety of exchange rate concessions at various points in time. In the early 1980s, the country's value started to decrease as a result of high inflation, growing political pressure, and international sanctions imposed on the country as a result of international opposition to the apartheid system. Sanctions were imposed on the country because of international resistance to the apartheid system. The first time that the rand was worth more than one dollar was in March of 1982, and it remained there until June of 1984, when it started to swiftly devalue against the dollar.

After it became clear in the early 1990s that the country was heading for Black majority rule and one reform after the other was proclaimed, uncertainty about the future of the country accelerated the depreciation of the currency until the threshold of R 3 to the dollar was exceeded in November 1992. Since then, the value of the rand as measured against the dollar has been influenced by a variety of local and international occurrences. These include the country's general election in 1994 (which caused the rand to fall to more than R3.60 to the dollar), the appointment of Tito Mboweni as governor of the South African Reserve Bank, and the inauguration of President Thabo Mbeki in 1999.

Countries Accepting the South African Rand

Amount in the South African Rand You Should Carry for Your Trip

Many factors determine how much money you'll need to spend on a vacation to South Africa. The cost of getting to your destination, the cost of your lodging, and the cost of your meals will all have an impact on your holiday budget. A budget-conscious traveller visiting South Africa can get by with as little as R521 per day. A day of vacation, on the other hand, can easily cost more than R3,501 if you utilise premium forms of transportation, dine at Michelin-starred restaurants, and stay solely in the finest hotels. The cost of a vacation for two people, on the other hand, can range from R1100 to R7,701.

In South Africa, housing costs between R256 to R2,064 per person every day. However, the daily cost of transportation might range from R95 to R526 depending on whether you use public transportation or private transportation.

All in all, you can keep an eye on the live South African rand rate in order to exchange your currency notes. You can easily check South African rand to US dollar, 1 South African rand to Pakistani rupee or South African rand to INR on the platform.