Currency symbol facts for kids

A currency symbol is a graphic symbol used as a shorthand for a currency's name, especially in reference to amounts of money.

Although several former currency symbols were rendered obsolete by the adoption of the euro, having a new and unique currency symbol – implementation of which requires the adoption of new Unicode and type formats – has now become a status symbol for international currencies. The European Commission considers the global recognition of the euro sign € part of its success. In 2009, India launched a public competition to replace the ₨ ligature it shared with neighbouring countries. It finalised its new currency symbol, ₹ () on 15 July 2010. It is a blend of the Latin letter 'R' with the Devanagari letter 'र' (ra).

Usage

When writing currency amounts, the location of the symbol varies by language. Many currencies in the English-speaking world and Latin America place it before the amount (e.g., R$50,00). The Cape Verdean escudo (as the Portuguese escudo, to which it was formerly pegged) places its symbol in the decimal separator position (i.e., 20$00). In many European countries such as France, Germany, Greece, Scandinavian countries, the symbol is usually placed after the amount (e.g., 20,50 €).

The decimal separator also follows local countries' standards. For instance, the United Kingdom often uses an interpunct as the decimal point on price stickers (e.g., £5·52), although no longer generally does so in print. Commas (e.g. €5,00) or decimal points (e.g. $50.00) are common separators used in other countries. See decimal separator for information on international standards.