New Zealand dollar

The New Zealand dollar (sign: $; code: NZD) is the currency of the Realm of New Zealand (including New Zealand proper and the territories of the Cook Islands, Niue, the Ross Dependency, and Tokelau), as well as a single British Overseas Territory, the Pitcairn Islands. It is divided into 100 cents.

It is normally written with the dollar sign $, or NZ$ to distinguish it from other dollar-denominated currencies. In the context of currency trading, it is often informally called the "Kiwi", since New Zealand is commonly associated with the indigenous bird and the $1 coin depicts a kiwi. It is one of the 10 most-traded currencies in the world, being approximately 2.0% of global foreign exchange market daily turnover in 2013. (See Global Foreign Exchange Market section below.)

History

Introduction

Prior to the introduction of the New Zealand dollar in 1967, the New Zealand pound was the currency of New Zealand, which had been distinct from the pound sterling since 1933. The pound used the £sd system, in which the pound was divided into 20 shillings and one shilling was divided into 12 pence, which by the 1950s was considered complicated and cumbersome.