BRL - Brazilian Real

Brazilian Real is the official present day currency of Brazil. It is also accepted in the neighboring border countries such as Uruguay and Paraguay where Brazilian people would usually spend their money for shopping. The International Organization for Standardization gave the Brazilian its currency code of BRL and signed with R$ symbol. There are no nicknames or alternate names for Brazilian Real. Its plural form though is called Reais. In Brazil, the real has an inflation rate of 6.37% as reported by Instituto Brasileiro de Geografia e Estatistica (IBGE) for the month of May 2014. The highest inflation rate recorded was 6821.31 in April 1990. The lowest inflation rate on the other hand was recorded last December of 1998 at 1.65% value.

Initially, Brazil used the currency of Portuguese Real when they were still a colony of Portugal. In 1790, the old Brazilian Real became the official currency of Brazil. It is not subdivided to smaller units and has a different denotation system compared to the modern real. Anything below 1000 is signed "Rs" like Rs 350. When the amount reaches the thousands value, a Cifrao is inserted after the thousands value like Rs 1$345 for 1,345 Real. However, the currency had a huge devaluation in the earlier half of 1900's. When the exchange rate versus dollar became Rs 22$500 = 1USD, the situation forced the government that time to abolish the old real system. In 1942, the Brazilian Cruzeiro Real replaced the old real at a rate of Rs 1$000 = 1 Cruzeiro. There have been 3 series of Cruzeiro Real bank notes that circulated the country in the period of time it was in use. But even with the new currency, the inflation rate of Brazilian money was still beyond control and the economy was unstable. In further efforts to stabilize the economy and control the inflation, the Brazilian Cruzeiro Real was short lived from 1942-1994 and was replaced by the modern currency Brazilian Real.

This modern day currency Brazilian Real was first issued on July 1, 1994. The issuance was initiated and approved by then Minister of Finance, Fernando Henrique Cardoso, during the presidency of Itamar Franco. The change was part of an economic reformation plan called the Plano Real. The Plano Real is a substantial monetary reform package which aims to stabilize the Brazilian economy and address the rampant inflation that was happening for three decades. A completely new set of bank notes and coins were made for the new Real. Surprisingly, the real gained value after its introduction to the public. At that time, the exchange rate was 1 real = 1 USD. The real reached it's highest peak versus USD at 1 real = 0.5 USD in May 2007. The lowest peak however, is at 4 real = 1 USD in October 2002.

The modern day Brazilian Real is subdivided into cents (or centavos) which is 1/100 and denoted as ¢. Like other currencies, Real also comes in forms of coins and notes for ease of use and trading. BRL coins have the following denomination; 1cent, 5 cents, 10 cents, 25 cents, 50 cents and 1 real. For the bank notes, there are 2 reais, 5 reais, 10 reais, 20 reais, 50 reais and 100 reais denomination.

All coins and bank notes are produced by Casa da Moeda do Brasil in Rio de Janeiro. The first series of coins are made from stainless steel. The second series of coins are made from different combinations of metals. Copper plated steel coins were used for 1 cent and 5 cents coin. Brass plated steel for 10 cents and 25 cents coins. A cupronickel coin is used for 50 cents and a bi-coloured brass and cupronickel for 1 real. In November 2005, the 1 cent coin is no longer produced but all existing coins are still of legal tender. Traders and retailers commonly round off their prices to the nearest 5 cents or 10 cents. In 1994, the first set of bank notes were introduced in 1, 5, 10, 50 and 100 reais denominations. The 2 reais bank note was introduced in year 2000 and followed by the 20 reais in 2001. The production for 1 reais bank note was discontinued in December 31, 2005 but existing bills are still of legal tender. The Central Bank of Brazil made an announcement of releasing a new set of bank notes on February 3, 2010. The new series will have more and improved security features for protection from counterfeiting. The new bank notes also comes in different sizes according to value to aid the visually impaired citizens. The new bank notes came into circulation in December of 2010. More than the functional purposes, the release of new bank notes also denotes the growth and sustainability of Brazilian economy requiring a stronger and safer currency.