Qatari riyal
ريال قطري (Arabic)
ISO 4217
CodeQAR (numeric: 634)
Subunit0.01
Unit
SymbolQR and ر.ق‎
Denominations
Subunit
 1⁄100dirham
Banknotes
 Freq. usedQR 1, QR 5, QR 10, QR 50, QR 100, QR 200, QR 500
 Rarely usedQR 22 (commemorative)
Coins
 Freq. used25, 50 dirhams
 Rarely used1, 5, 10 dirhams
Demographics
User(s) Qatar
Issuance
Central bankQatar Central Bank
 Websitewww.qcb.gov.qa
Valuation
Inflation5.42%
 SourceQatar Central Bank, 2022.
Pegged withUS dollar (USD)
US$1 = QR 3.64

The Qatari riyal (sign: QR in Latin,[1] ر.ق in Arabic; ISO code: QAR) is the currency of the State of Qatar. It is divided into 100 dirhams (Arabic: درهم).

History

Until 1966, Qatar used the Indian rupee as its currency, in the form of Gulf rupees. When India devalued the rupee in 1966, Qatar, along with the other states using the Gulf rupee, chose to introduce its own currency.[2]

Before doing so, Qatar briefly adopted the Saudi riyal, then introduced the Qatar and Dubai riyal following the signing of the Qatar-Dubai Currency Agreement on 21 March 1966.[3] The Saudi riyal was worth 1.065 Gulf rupees, whilst the Qatar and Dubai riyal was equal to the Gulf rupee prior to its devaluation. Initially pegged with sterling at one shilling and six pence (1s. 6d.) per riyal, its value was changed to one shilling and nine pence (1s. 9d.) when sterling was devalued in 1967, maintaining its value in relation to gold.

Following Dubai's entry into the United Arab Emirates, Qatar began issuing the Qatari riyal separate from Dubai on 19 May 1973. The old notes continued to circulate in parallel for 90 days, at which time they were withdrawn.[4]

For a wider history surrounding currency in the region, see the history of British currency in the Middle East.

Coins

In 1966, coins were introduced in the name of Qatar and Dubai for 1, 5, 10, 25, and 50 dirhams. In 1973, a new series of coins was introduced in the same sizes and compositions as the earlier pieces but in the name of Qatar only. Only 25 and 50 dirham coins are now circulated, although smaller coins remain legal tender.

Coins (Qatar)
ImageValueDiameterMassCompositionEdgeObverseReverseYear of
ObverseReverse first mintingwithdrawal
25 dirhams20 mm3.2 gNickel-clad SteelReededDates on top. Emblem of Qatar consisting of two crossed bent swords, and between them a sailing ship (dhow) sailing on waves beside an island with two palm treesValue2000
50 dirhams25 mm5.8 gNickel-clad SteelReededDates on top. Emblem of Qatar consisting of two crossed bent swords, and between them a sailing ship (dhow) sailing on waves beside an island with two palm treesValue2000

Banknotes

On September 18, 1966, the Qatar & Dubai Currency Board introduced notes for 1, 5, 10, 25, 50, and 100 riyals. These were replaced on 19 May 1973 by notes of the Qatar Monetary Agency in denominations of 1, 5, 10, 100, and 500 riyals; a 50 riyal note was issued in 1976. The Qatar Central Bank was established by decree 15 on 5 August 1973. All coins and notes issued by the Qatar Monetary Agency became the property of the bank but continued to circulate for several years.[5] In 2003, the Fourth Series was issued and on September 26, 2007, the revised of 100 and 500 riyal was issued, follow the revised of the 1, 5, 10, 50 on September 15, 2008. On December 13, 2020, the Qatar Central Bank issued its fifth series of banknotes for circulation. Included in this series is the 200 riyal banknote. The front side of the notes share a common design based on traditional geometric patterns, the Flag of Qatar, Qatari flora and a gate representing historic Qatari architecture.

Qatar issued a commemorative 22 riyal note for the 2022 FIFA World Cup.

First series (1973-76)
ImageValueMain ColorDescriptionDate of
ObverseReverseObverseReverseIssueWithdrawn
QR 1 Red Coat of arms of Qatar Port of Doha May 19, 1973 Unknown
QR 5 Brown and Purple National museum
QR 10 Green Qatar Monetary Agency building
QR 50 Blue Oil rig 1976
QR 100 Olive Green Ministry of Finance May 19, 1973
QR 500 Mosque of the Sheikhs
Second series (1981)
ImageValueMain ColorDescriptionDate of
ObverseReverseObverseReverseIssueWithdrawn
QR 1 Brown Coat of arms of Qatar Doha (Then changed to Dhow, Ministry of Finance, Emir's palace since 1985) July 7, 1981 Unknown
QR 5 Purple, Red, Green and Blue Sheeps
QR 10 Green and Yellow National museum
QR 50 Blue Furnace in steel factory
QR 100 Olive Green Qatar Central Bank building
QR 500 Green and Blue Oil rig
Third series (1996)
ImageValueMain ColorDescriptionDate of
ObverseReverseObverseReverseIssueWithdrawn
QR 1 Brown Coat of arms of Qatar Dhow, Ministry of Finance, Emir's palace June 22, 1996 Unknown
QR 5 Purple, Red, Green and Blue Sheeps
QR 10 Green and Yellow National museum
QR 50 Blue Furnace in steel factory
QR 100 Olive Green Qatar Central Bank building
QR 500 Green and Blue Oil rig
Fourth series (2003)
ImageValueMain ColorDescriptionDate of
ObverseReverseObverseReverseIssueWithdrawn
QR 1 Gray & Blue Coat of arms of Qatar A European bee-eater, a crested lark, and a kentish plover. June 15, 2003 July 1, 2021
QR 5 Green National Museum of Qatar, Camel, oryxes
QR 10 Orange Dhow, Sand Dunes
QR 50 Pink The Pearl Monument and a view of the Qatar Central Bank building
QR 100 Green & Gold Old Mosque and Al-Shaqab Institute June 15, 2009
QR 500 Blue Falcon, with a view of the Amiri Diwan of Qatar which serves as the government building for the State of Qatar
Revised Fourth series (2007-2008)
ImageValueMain ColorDescriptionDate of
ObverseReverseObverseReverseIssueWithdrawn
QR 1 Gray & Blue Coat of arms of Qatar A European bee-eater, a crested lark, and a kentish plover. September 15, 2008 July 1, 2021
QR 5 Green National Museum of Qatar, Camel, oryxes
QR 10 Orange Dhow, Sand Dunes
QR 50 Pink The Pearl Monument and a view of the Qatar Central Bank building
QR 100 Green & Gold Old Mosque and Al-Shaqab Institute September 26, 2007
QR 500 Blue Falcon, with a view of the Amiri Diwan of Qatar which serves as the government building for the State of Qatar
Fifth series (2020)
ImageValueMain ColorDescriptionDate of
ObverseReverseObverseReverseIssueWithdrawn
QR 1 Green Flag of Qatar; Dreama flower; gate representing historical Qatari architecture Traditional Dhow (Bateel) and the Oyster and Pearl Monument December 18, 2020 Current
QR 5 Brown Traditional desert scene comprising fauna (Arab horses, Camel, Oryxes), flora (Al Qataf) and ‘hair tent (buryuut hajar)
QR 10 Blue Lusail Stadium, Torch Tower (Aspire Zone), Sidra Medicine and Education City (Qatar Foundation)
QR 50 Red Qatar Central Bank building and Ministry of Finance building
QR 100 Cyan Abu Al Qubaib Mosque
QR 200 Orange Palace of Sheikh Abdullah bin Jassim Al Thani, Qatar National Museum and Museum of Islamic Art
QR 500 Violet Ras Laffan LNG refinery and LNG canter ship
Commemorative Banknotes
ImageValueMain ColorDescriptionDate of
ObverseReverseObverseReverseIssueWithdrawn
QR 22 Brown, green, blue, orange, and purple Doha, Lusail Stadium Tower, dhow, Al Bayt Stadium, globe November 9, 2022 Current

Fixed exchange rate

The Qatari riyal is pegged to the US dollar at a fixed exchange rate of US$1 = QR 3.64. This rate was enshrined into Qatari law by Royal Decree No.34 of 2001, signed by Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, Emir of Qatar, on 9 July 2001.

Article (1) states that the Qatari riyal exchange rate shall be pegged against the US dollar at QR 3.64, and sets upper and lower limits of QR 3.6415 and QR 3.6385 for the Qatar Central Bank's purchase and sale of dollars with banks operating in Qatar. Article (2) provides the Qatar Central Bank with the authority to determine the volume and the time of sale of US dollars and the associated conditions of such sales and payments. Article (3) cancels the earlier Royal Decree No.60 of 1975, by which the riyal was officially pegged to the IMF's special drawing rights (SDRs).[6][7][8]

Current QAR exchange rates
From Google Finance: AUD CAD CHF CNY EUR GBP HKD JPY USD INR KRW
From Yahoo! Finance: AUD CAD CHF CNY EUR GBP HKD JPY USD INR KRW
From XE.com: AUD CAD CHF CNY EUR GBP HKD JPY USD INR KRW
From OANDA: AUD CAD CHF CNY EUR GBP HKD JPY USD INR KRW

Note: Rates obtained from these websites may contradict with pegged rate mentioned above

Effect of the 2017 Qatar diplomatic crisis

In response to the 2017 Qatar diplomatic crisis, banks in the countries blockading Qatar had to stop trading with Qatari banks. This led to a fall in liquidity offshore and a move away from the fixed exchange rate outside of Qatar, with up to QR 3.81 being required to buy 1 US dollar in late June 2017,[9] a situation that continued until December 2017.[10][11]

This also led to cessation of trading of Qatari banknotes outside of Qatar with certain banks in certain countries such as the UK.[12]

Within Qatar itself, however, the Central Bank of Qatar has continued to buy and sell US dollars at the fixed rate.

See also

References

  1. ↑ "World Bank Editorial Style Guide 2020 - page 138" (PDF). openknowledge.worldbank.org. Retrieved 2022-08-01.
  2. ↑ "Monetary System in Qatar Historical Background".
  3. ↑ "The Bank Notes of the Qatar and Dubai Currency Board". islamicbanknotes.com. Archived from the original on 18 February 2017. Retrieved 20 April 2018.
  4. ↑ Linzmayer, Owen (2012). "Qatar & Dubai". The Banknote Book. San Francisco, CA: www.BanknoteNews.com.
  5. ↑ Linzmayer, Owen (2012). "Qatar". The Banknote Book. San Francisco, CA: www.BanknoteNews.com.
  6. ↑ Qatar Central Bank: Instructions to Banks, Volume 1
  7. ↑ "Qatar Central Bank - Exchange Rate Policy". www.qcb.gov.qa. Retrieved 20 April 2018.
  8. ↑ Schuler, Kurt (29 February 2004). "Tables of modern monetary history: Asia". Archived from the original on February 19, 2007.
  9. ↑ Torchia, Andrew; Arnold, Tom; Carvalho, Stanley (28 June 2017). "Qatar riyal FX market in chaos but bankers believe peg still solid". CNBC. Archived from the original on 2017-11-07. Retrieved 20 April 2018.
  10. ↑ "Qatar's Key Concern Remains on Funding Side". financialtribune.com. 22 October 2017. Retrieved 20 April 2018.
  11. ↑ "XE: USD / QAR Currency Chart. US Dollar to Qatari Riyal Rates". www.xe.com. Retrieved 20 April 2018.
  12. ↑ Editorial, Reuters (30 June 2017). "Several UK banks stop selling Qatar riyals as diplomatic crisis mounts". reuters.com. Retrieved 20 April 2018. {{cite news}}: |first= has generic name (help)
Preceded by:
Saudi riyal
Reason: delivery of local currency
Ratio: 1.065 Qatari and Dubai riyal = 1 Saudi riyal, or 1 Qatari and Dubai riyal = 1 pre-devalued Gulf rupee		 Currency of Qatar
1966 – 1973		 Succeeded by:
Qatari riyal
Reason: withdrawal of Dubai from common currency
Ratio: at par
Currency of Trucial States except for Abu Dhabi
1966 – 1973		 Succeeded by:
United Arab Emirates dirham
Reason: formed United Arab Emirates (in 1971)
Ratio: at par
Preceded by:
Qatari and Dubai riyal
Reason: withdrawal of Dubai from common currency
Ratio: at par		 Currency of Qatar
1973 –
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