Yemeni rial

The rial (ريال يمني; sign: ﷼; abbreviation: YRl (singular) and YRls (plural) in Latin, ,ر.ي in Arabic; ISO code: YER) is the official currency of the Republic of Yemen. It is technically divided into 100 fils, although coins denominated in fils have not been issued since Yemeni unification. Due to the ongoing political instability, the value of the Yemeni rial has fallen significantly.

The Yemeni civil war has caused the currency to diverge. In southern Yemen, which is primarily controlled by UAE-backed separatists and the former government backed by Saudi Arabia, ongoing printing has caused the currency's value to plummet. However, in northern Yemen, which is primarily controlled by Ansar Allah with support from Iran, banknotes printed after 2017 are not considered legal tender. Therefore, the exchange rate has remained stable. The differences in banknotes printed before and after 2017 can be determined by its size.

History
In the 18th and 19th century, the rial was traditionally associated with the Maria Theresa thaler, a currency that was widely used in Yemen owing to the Mocha coffee trade with the French, and a Yemeni request that its produce be paid for in thalers.

As Yemen progressed, it developed its own legal currency. After the union between the North (the Yemen Arab Republic) and the South (the People's Democratic Republic of Yemen) in 1990, both the northern rial and the southern dinar remained legal tender during a transitional period, with an exchange rate set at 1 dinar to 26 rials. On 11 June 1996, the dinar was withdrawn from circulation. In 1993, the first coins were issued for the Republic of Yemen. The value of the Yemeni rial against the United States dollar dropped significantly, compared to 12.01 rials per dollar in the early 1990s.

Since the mid-1990s, the Yemeni rial has been freely convertible. Though it dropped from YRls 20 to approximately YRls 215 against the US dollar since then, the rial was stable for several years. However, since 2010 the Central Bank of Yemen has had to intervene many times to protect the currency's value, resulting in a serious decline of foreign reserves. Due to the war, the exchange rate for the Yemeni rial has hovered between 250 and 500 Yemeni rials for 1 US dollar.

Coins
Before unification, North Yemen issued coins in denominations of 1, 5, 10, 25 and 50 fils, and 1 rial. The fils denominations have all disappeared from circulation. In 1993, new coins were introduced by the Central Bank of Yemen in denominations of 1 and 5 rials. These were followed by 10-rial coins in 1995 and 20-rial coins in 2004.

For the first time in nearly a decade, Yemen’s Houthi-led de-facto government has announced the issuing of a newly minted 100 riyal coin, a move which has prompted outcry from the internationally recognised government and its central bank based in Aden as a “dangerous escalation.”

Banknotes
At the time of unification, the Central Bank of Yemen issued banknotes in denominations of 1, 5, 10, 20, 50, and 100 rials. In 1993, the 1 and 5 rial notes were replaced by coins, with the same happening to the 10 rial notes in 1995, and 20 rial notes in 2004. In 1996, 200 rial notes were introduced, followed by 500 rials in 1997 and 1,000 rials in 1998. A 250 rial banknote was issued in 2009.

In 2017, the Central Bank of Yemen, now relocated in Aden, its interim capital due to the civil war, issued 500 and 1,000 rial banknotes with revised security features and different dimensions. In 2018, the Central Bank of Yemen reintroduced the 200 rial banknote and has issued a new 100 rial banknote.