Colombian peso

peso
Country:	Colombia
Subdivision:	100 centavos
ISO 4217 code :	COP
Abbreviation:	COL $, col $
Exchange rate : (29 Mar 2020)	1  EUR  = 4,467.6 COP 1,000 COP = 0.22383 EUR 1  CHF  = 4,151.7 COP 1,000 COP = 0.24087 CHF

2000 peso note and 500 peso coin

2.5 pesos gold coin from 1919, minted in fine weight like the British pound

The Colombian peso (Spanish: Peso Colombiano , ISO code: COP ) has been the currency of Colombia since 1837 and replaced the old real . It is issued by the Banco de la República and is unofficially abbreviated as COL $. However, the official peso symbol is $.

history

18th century

In the period before independence and also during the wars of independence, a large number of coins made of gold and silver were in circulation. Gold coins were dominant as gold was easily available as a commodity in the region. After independence in 1810/1819, the different means of payment were recognized as a disadvantage, but it was not until 1838 that Congress decided to collect all coins that were still in circulation from the colonial era. At the same time, the Tesorería ( Mint ) decided to replace the higher quality coins with banknotes , which led to the first major currency issue in Colombia. However, there was no uniform issuing policy, so that different types of coins and banknotes were soon in circulation again. The diversity was increased by foreign money admitted domestically, also due to the insufficient quantity. At the same time, the decimal system with the calculation of pieces and hundredths established itself and was finally introduced after 1874.

19th century

From 1886 onwards, inflationary tendencies became apparent due to the increased use of the printing press; in 1907 the value of the peso had sunk so much that it corresponded to the centavo of earlier years. The currency was stabilized again from 1918 onwards, and since then a more valuable development has been observed.

20th century

The renewed inflation in the last decades of the 20th century led to an increase in the number of digits before the decimal point. The Centavo is largely unknown to the younger generations. From November 10, 2003, the Colombian peso (COP) was supplemented by the Unidad de Valor real (COU). The inflation rate was around three percent in 2012.

Inflation in Colombia from 1992 to 2012

present

From 2003 the Colombian peso has recovered, despite foreign currency purchases by the state. This phase lasted until 2012 with some fluctuations. Since then the currency has fallen again against the US dollar and the euro . The main reason was the drop in the price of oil from around 2014. Historically, the Colombian peso reached an all-time high against the dollar of COP 3453.90 in February 2016 and a record low of COP 689.21 in August 1992. At the turn of 2017/18, you had to pay 2,800 pesos per US dollar. The much stronger euro was around 3500 pesos.

Currency units:
until 1847:	1 peso = 8 reales, 2 pesos = 1 escudo
1847-1853:	1 peso = 10 reales, 1 real = 10 decimos de real
1853–1872:	1 peso = 10 decimos or 10 reales
from 1872:	1 peso = 100 centavos

Exchange rate to the euro from 2010 to 2019 (screenshot from the Frankfurt Stock Exchange website)

Coins

Issue date	Face value	Weight	throughput knife	Strength	comment
August 8, 1992	100 pesos	5.31 g	23 mm	1.55 mm
June 1, 1994	200 pesos	7.08 g	24.4 mm	1.70 mm	The design is based on the draft by Dicken Castro .
December 26, 1993	500 pesos	7.43 g	23.5 mm	2.0 mm
November 12, 1996	1000 pesos	7.30 g	21.67 mm	2.76 mm	This coin is no longer produced due to the high incidence of falsifications.

Coins currently in circulation (since 2012)
image		value	Technical parameters				description
front	back		diameter	Strength	Weight	materials	Motif in front	Motif on the back
		50 pesos	17 mm	1.3 mm	2.0 g	Copper , nickel , zinc	Spectacled bear	Value, enclosed by the words "Republic of Colombia" s and the year of issue.
		100 pesos	20.3 mm	1.55 mm	3.34 g	Aluminum bronze 92% copper 6% aluminum 2% nickel	Espeletia	Value, enclosed by the words "Republic of Colombia" and the year of issue.
		200 pesos	22.4 mm	1.7 mm	4.61 g	65% copper 20% zinc 15% nickel	Scarlet Macaw	Value, enclosed by the words "Republic of Colombia" and the year of issue.
		500 pesos	23.7 mm	2 mm	7.14 g	Edge: 65% copper 20% zinc 15% nickel Center: 92% copper 6% aluminum 2% nickel	Glass frog	Value, enclosed by the words "Republic of Colombia" and the year of issue.
		1000 pesos	26.7 mm		9.95 g	Edge: 92% copper 6% aluminum 2% nickel Center: 65% copper 20% zinc 15% nickel	Loggerhead sea turtle	Value, enclosed by the words "Republic of Colombia" and the year of issue.

Banknotes

Since 1992, the banknotes have been designed by Colombian artists, who are guided by the improved security features of the notes and a selected topic. The whole development from start to issue takes an average of one year. New from 2016 is the issue of a 100,000 peso note, the thousands no longer exist. It was replaced by a coin.

Current banknotes (since 2016)
image		value	size	description
front	back			front	back
		2000 pesos	128 × 66 mm	Débora Arango	Caño Cristales
		5000 pesos	133 × 66 mm	José Asunción Silva	Colombian moors, the Andes, and the Espeletia plant
		10,000 pesos	138 × 66 mm	Virginia Gutiérrez	Colombian Amazon
		20,000 pesos	143 × 66 mm	Alfonso López Michelsen	Mojana region and a man with a sombrero vueltiao
		50,000 pesos	148 × 66 mm	Gabriel García Marquez	Ciudad Perdida in the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta
		100,000 pesos	153 × 66 mm	Carlos Lleras Restrepo	Wax palms in the Cocora Valley , Quindío

Banknotes still circulating
image		value	size	description
front	back			front	back
		1000 pesos	130 × 65 mm	Jorge Eliécer Gaitán	Jorge Eliécer Gaitán (brisket) and a crowd
		2000 pesos	130 × 65 mm	Francisco de Paula Santander	The door of the Casa de la Moneda
		5000 pesos	140 × 70 mm	José Asunción Silva	Outside area and the whole Nocturno poem in microtext
		10,000 pesos	140 × 70 mm	Policarpa Salavarrieta	Main square of Guaduas , the birthplace of Policarpa Salavarrieta
		20,000 pesos	140 × 70 mm	Gabriel García Márquez and the Ciudad Perdida of the Sierra Nevada
		50,000 pesos	140 × 70 mm	Jorge Isaacs	An excerpt from the novel La María

Web links

• The New Family of Colombian Bank Notes (English)
• Historic banknotes from Colombia ( German ) ( English )

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Colombian Peso 1992-2018 Data Chart tradingeconomics.com, accessed on January 15, 2018 (English)
2. ^ Colombia's peso decline not over; Dollar could reach COP3200 colombiareports.com, accessed January 15, 2018
3. ↑ Euro - Colombian Peso - Rate (EUR - COP) boerse-online.de, from January 20, 2018