British Pound Sterling (GBP) Exchange Rates on 22nd February 2012 (22/02/2012)
Exchange rate full table
| Updated: 2012-02-22 | |||||||||
| Convert from | Convert to | 1 GBP | Conversion | in currency | Conversion | ||||
 GBP |
GBP |
1 | GBP to GBP | 1 | GBP to GBP | ||||
| GBP |
 BGN |
2.3138 | GBP to BGN | 0.4322 | BGN to GBP | ||||
| GBP |
 HRK |
8.9746 | GBP to HRK | 0.1114 | HRK to GBP | ||||
| GBP |
 CZK |
29.7938 | GBP to CZK | 0.0336 | CZK to GBP | ||||
| GBP |
 DKK |
8.7983 | GBP to DKK | 0.1137 | DKK to GBP | ||||
| GBP |
 EEK |
19.6523 | GBP to EEK | 0.0509 | EEK to GBP | ||||
| GBP |
 HUF |
342.0187 | GBP to HUF | 0.0029 | HUF to GBP | ||||
| GBP |
 KZT |
231.9254 | GBP to KZT | 0.0043 | KZT to GBP | ||||
| GBP |
 LVL |
0.8252 | GBP to LVL | 1.2119 | LVL to GBP | ||||
| GBP |
 LTL |
4.0848 | GBP to LTL | 0.2448 | LTL to GBP | ||||
| GBP |
 MKD |
72.8776 | GBP to MKD | 0.0137 | MKD to GBP | ||||
| GBP |
 MDL |
18.5565 | GBP to MDL | 0.0539 | MDL to GBP | ||||
| GBP |
 NOK |
8.8607 | GBP to NOK | 0.1129 | NOK to GBP | ||||
| GBP |
 PLN |
4.9635 | GBP to PLN | 0.2015 | PLN to GBP | ||||
| GBP |
 RON |
5.1593 | GBP to RON | 0.1938 | RON to GBP | ||||
| GBP |
 RUB |
46.528 | GBP to RUB | 0.0215 | RUB to GBP | ||||
| GBP |
 SKK |
35.6418 | GBP to SKK | 0.0281 | SKK to GBP | ||||
| GBP |
 SEK |
10.4438 | GBP to SEK | 0.0958 | SEK to GBP | ||||
| GBP |
 CHF |
1.4278 | GBP to CHF | 0.7004 | CHF to GBP | ||||
| GBP |
 TRY |
2.7569 | GBP to TRY | 0.3627 | TRY to GBP | ||||
| GBP |
 UAH |
12.5565 | GBP to UAH | 0.0796 | UAH to GBP | ||||
British Pound Sterling (GBP)
Sign £
1 Pound is subdivided into 100 pence.
GBP is the currency code for the pound sterling which is represented in accounting with the £ symbol. The GBP is the fourth most traded currency and third most widely held reserve currency in the world. It is issued by the second oldest central bank in the world, the Bank of England, once known as the Governor and Company of the Bank of England. The Bank of England was, at its formation in 1694, a private bank until 1931 when it was placed under the control of the British Treasury Department with it finally being fully nationalized in 1946. This is how it remained until 1998 when it was returned to the Treasury, this time as a wholly owned, yet independent public organization.
Coins used:
- frequently used: 1p, 2p, 5p, 10p, 20p, 50p, £1, £2
- rarely used: £5
Banknotes used:
- frequently used: £5, £10, £20
- rarely used: £1 (Scot. & IoM only), £50, £100 (Scot. & N. Ireland only)
Central Bank
Bank of England
http://www.bankofengland.co.uk
The Bank of England issues GBP currency within Wales and England and controls GBP issuance in Scotland and Northern Ireland. Though it retains this sovereign control over GBP in these core countries, there are 7 other central banks that have the power to issue GBP throughout the United Kingdom, each in their own respective countries.
This is because GBP is the official currency of the entire United Kingdom, the Channel Islands, the Isle of Man, as well as British dependencies and territories such as South Georgia, the South Sandwich Islands, British Antarctica, as well as Tristan da Cunha. Each of these dependencies and territories have their own issuances of GBP. While not the only major currency in the world that is issued by more than a single central bank, the GBP is the largest currency that has this unique characteristic. This makes it particularly difficult to understand the specific movement of the currency relative to worldwide markets because it is in fact not reflective of the monetary policy or economic condition of a particular nation. The issuance is spread across multiple economies and varied economic conditions as well as the local monetary policy responses to those conditions at any given time.
Therefore even though the Bank of England has a Monetary Policy Committee (MPC), their power over the GBP is limited. This limitation is increased with knowing that the MPC itself is responsible for carrying out directives from the Treasury if such directives are also backed by Parliament. Short of these additional directives, the Bank of England MPC is tasked with pursuing the economic target of price stability through the setting of interest rates. The MPC is comprised of 8 directors and the Governor of the Bank of England. The MPC is designed to be independent of political influence yet is accountable to both the Treasury and Parliament, this accountability certainly influences decisions made, albeit indirectly. The MPC has a substantial impact on the circulation and valuation of the GBP.
The value of the historical currencies of England in the 17th century was as an enforceable legal tender value relative to gold. By 1816 the direct relation of British currency relative to silver was established, this being the first precursor to the existing name as the pound sterling, but as the underlying currency fluctuating between being used as legal tender and simply as a value based banknote. Over time the British currency switched between the gold and silver standard with the any standard being completely abolished in 1914. After World War I they returned to a version of the gold standard in order to stifle post war inflation. The gold standard was once again abolished at the outset of the Great Depression, in 1931, causing a sudden devaluation of the GBP by over 25%. Nine years later in 1940, the Bretton Woods system was adopted and the GBP was pegged to the USD. This held until the pressures of post World War II debt forced England to devalue the currency over 30% in 1949, yet they still remained within Bretton Woods, simply at a lower valuation. In the 1960's with the exchange rate remaining at the 1949 fixed point relative to the USD the GBP was devalued again this time by 14.3% in November 1967. When Bretton Woods finally disintegrated in 1971, the GBP became a de facto floating currency and has remained as such to the current day.
This long history of the GBP shows the ways in which some valuations and currencies can experience long periods of stability and then bounce through different standards, valuations, and policies within a single decade. Within each of these movements there is a complexity of international issues and interdependence that affects each new development. The most recent of which is the debate of whether the GBP should be consolidated into the euro. This consolidation would be complex given the dispersed central bank structure of the GBP and could include a partial transfer of the GBP to EUR leaving the remaining GBP issuers outside the eurozone. This is treated primarily as a political topic relative to the GBP and yet it can and will have a substantial impact on the economies of the United Kingdom as well as all those using it not only as a reserve currency to supplement the euro, effectively narrowing their diversification, but also for those that see the largess of the United Kingdom economy substantially influencing the current dynamics within the eurozone.
These are all value and circulation issues that will drastically impact the GBP as a currency over the next 2-10 years. Aside from the political issues of circulation, absorption into the euro, and standards of value is the current issue of GBP acceptance as legal tender. As it stands, similar to the CAD, which has its roots in ties to the GBP, there are maximum legal values set for acceptance of the GBP as legal tender. These guidelines place maximum restrictions at 20p with 1p or 2p coins, £5 with 5p or 10p coins, £10 with 20p through 50p coins, and unlimited with £1-£ 5 coins. There is no restriction on the acceptance of banknotes as legal tender.
The GBP is a complex currency that is difficult to forecast given the diversity of central banks and corresponding economies to which each serves. This is further complicated when noting the rapidly changing history of the standard of value connected and rapidly changing history of the GBP, this combines further with the uncertainty of joining the eurozone and the consequences that will result. All of these factors combine to form an uncertain future for the GBP and its place within world trade and as a sovereign currency.
Other References
Wikipedia article on British Pound Sterling
XE.com Live Currency Converter for GBP
Have more info on the British Pound Sterling? Please contact us
If you want to link to this page, please use the code provided below.