Caribbean guilder facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Caribbean guilder
Banknote Coins
ISO 4217 Code	XCG
User(s)	Curaçao Sint Maarten
Pegged with	U.S. dollar = 1.79 XCG
Subunit
1⁄100	cent
cent	c
Plural	guilders
cent	cents
Coins	1c, 5c, 10c, 25c, 50c, 1Cg, 5Cg
Banknotes	10Cg, 20Cg, 50Cg, 100Cg, 200Cg
Printer	Crane Currency
Exchange rate Euro: https://caribischegulden.nl/

The Caribbean guilder (code: XCG; abbreviation: Cg) is the money used in Curaçao and Sint Maarten. These are two countries that are part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. One Caribbean guilder is made up of 100 cents.

This new money was first used on March 31, 2025. It took the place of the old money, which was called the Netherlands Antillean guilder (ANG). The old money stopped being valid on July 1, 2025. For a short time, both types of money were used together.

It was announced in 2020 that the Caribbean guilder would be introduced. However, its launch was delayed several times. Designing and making the new money cost about 15 million ANG. You can still exchange the old ANG money for the new Caribbean guilder. You can do this at commercial banks for one year after it was introduced. After that, you can exchange it at the Central Bank of Curaçao and Sint Maarten for 29 more years.

What's in a Name?

The Caribbean guilder has a special code, XCG. The "X" means it's a currency used by more than one country. It also keeps the number 532, which was the code for the old Netherlands Antillean guilder. The Central Bank of Curaçao and Sint Maarten decided its official short name would be Cg.

Why a New Currency?

After the dissolution of the Netherlands Antilles (when the group of islands split up), the old Netherlands Antillean guilder continued to be used. Plans for the new Caribbean guilder were not finished until both Curaçao and Sint Maarten agreed to share money.

At one point, people thought the new money would be called CMg. This would stand for Curaçao, Sint Maarten guilder. It was planned to be linked to the United States dollar at the same rate as the old money. This means 1 US dollar would equal 1.79 CMg. The islands of Bonaire, Sint Eustatius, and Saba (called the BES islands) started using the U.S. dollar directly in 2011. So, introducing the CMg would have meant the end of the old guilder.

In 2014, Curaçao and Sint Maarten looked into the idea of Curaçao having its own central bank. This caused more delays for the new Caribbean guilder. Later, in 2015, a minister from Curaçao said that studying a money union was not a top priority. Some people thought a big problem was that there was no clear way for the islands to work together on money matters.

By 2018, Sint Maarten's finance minister said there were only two years of old banknotes left. The islands needed to decide quickly. They also thought about using the U.S. dollar or the euro.

In 2019, Curaçao's finance minister confirmed the new guilder would arrive in 2021. The Central Bank officially announced it a year later. However, there were more delays. By 2021, the launch was expected in 2023 or 2024. In 2022, the Central Bank wanted it by 2024. Then, in 2023, it was pushed to 2025 at the latest. Finally, the money was introduced in March 2025.

Who Manages the Money?

The Central Bank of Curaçao and Sint Maarten is in charge of the Caribbean guilder. The head of the bank is chosen by the prime ministers of both islands. The two islands also choose six other people to be on the bank's main board. The new money is being slowly introduced over three months, starting from March 31, 2025.

Coins and Banknotes

The new Caribbean guilder coins are made by the Royal Canadian Mint. They come in values of 5 guilders, 1 guilder, 50 cents, 25 cents, 10 cents, 5 cents, and 1 cent.

The banknotes are printed by Crane Currency. They are made of cotton, like the old money, but are stronger. The banknotes come in values of 200 guilders, 100 guilders, 50 guilders, 20 guilders, and 10 guilders. Unlike the old money, there is no 2.5-guilder coin or 25-guilder banknote. Instead, there are new 20-guilder and 200-guilder banknotes.

To stop people from making fake money, the designs were not chosen in a public contest. The designs for all the coins and banknotes were shown on August 22, 2024. They feature pictures of sea creatures.

Coins

In February 2024, the designs for the one-guilder and five-guilder coins were approved. The coins have small differences for Curaçao and Sint Maarten, but they can be used on either island.

Banknotes

In June 2024, all banknote designs were approved. The first banknotes were printed soon after. The front of the banknotes shows marine life. The back of the banknotes features famous places from Curaçao and Sint Maarten.