Money


The currency of Papua New Guinea (PNG) is made up of Kina (keena) and toea (toya) with 100 toea equal to One Kina. The Kina was introduced on the 19th of April 1975. The Kina replaced the Australian Dollar and the toea replaced the Australian cent. Originally the Kina was issued at par with the Australian Dollar -- see also National Emblem of Papua New Guinea

 

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The Kina was so named because in Tok Pisin (neo-melanesian) and in the Kuanua language it referred to the valuable pearl shell used widely in the Highlands as traditional money. Toea, is a Motu word, meaning valuable arm-shell and has had a wide traditional use in coastal Papua for trading and brideprice payments.

 

During the colonial period and before the introduction of the Kina and Toea, the people of PNG used German Marks and Pfennings, Japanese Yen, Australian Pounds, Shillings and Pence and most recently up until the 19th of April 1975 Australian Dollars and cents.

 

On the 19th of April 1975 only the coins 1t, 2t, 5t, 10t, 20t and K1.00 were minted and the K2, K5 and K10 bank notes The K20 bank note was introduced in 1978, the K50 bank note in 1989 and in November 2005 the Bank of PNG introduced a K100 note. The 50 toea coin was introduced in 1980 for the 3rd South Pacific Festival of Arts held in Port Moresby. The 1 and 2 toea were minted in bronze, with the others in cupronickel.

 

Today the PNG currency consists of the following notes and coins in daily use with the 1 and 2 toea coins phased out in 2007. The 1 and 2 toea coins are increasingly harder to find as 99.99% have been returned to the bank and are no longer legal tender.

 

NOTES  : K100, K50, K20, K10, K5 and K2.
COINS   : K1, 50t, 20t, 10t, 5t, (2t and 1t - phased out in 2007)

 

To celebrate events happening in 2015 the Bank of PNG released several bank notes and coins.- K10 - K20 and 50t .. The banknotes and new 50 toea coin are legal tender as of 21 May 2015.

 

 

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K2 Note  

 

 

Old worn out K2 Note 
This is a worn K2 polymer note still in daily circulation

The K2 note is made from a plastic polymer and it eventually rots away like an old plastic bag. It is made by the Royal Australian Mint using the same process as the Australian Dollar notes. Here is a web site that deals with polymer notes -- http://www.polymernotes.org/country_pages/png.htm

 

Good condition K2 Note
This one is in good condition

COINS:  K1, 50t, 20t, 10t, 5t, (2t and 1t - being phased out)

The One Kina coin has a hole in the middle. Unlike some other countries the single Kina has always been a coin and not a bank note Up until November 2005 the K1 coin measures 32.72 mm with central hole of 6.9 mm It now measures 30 mm The dimensions of the other coins are :

Coin
1st Issue
Metal Type
Weight
Diameter
Features (back)
Withdrawn from
Issue
1 toea
1975
Bronze-Copper plated Zinc
2.07 grams
17.65 mm
Birdwing Butterfly (Ornithoptera Paradis)
2007
2 toea
1975
Bronze-Copper plated Zinc
4.15 grams
21.72 mm
Butterfly Cod (Pterois Volitans)
2007
5 toea
1975
Cupro Nickel
2.83 grams
19.53 mm
Turtle (Carettochelys)  
5 toea
1975
Nickel plated Steel
2.83 grams
19.53mm
Turtle (Carettochelys)  
10 toea
1975
Cupro Nickel
5.65 grams
23.72 mm
Cuscus (Phalanger maculatus)  
10 toea
 
Nickel plated Steel
5.65 grams
23.72 mm
Cuscus (Phalanger maculatus)  
20 toea
1975
Cupro Nickel
11.30 grams
28.65 mm
Cassowary (Casuarius Bennetti)  
20 toea
 
Nickel plated Steel
11.30 grams
28.65 mm
Cassowary (Casuarius Bennetti)  
50 toea
1980
1991
1998
Cupro Nickel
13.50 grams
30.00 mm
1980 4th South Pacific Festival of Arts
1991 9th South Pacific Games 
1998 Bank of PNG Silver Jubilee
 
50 toea
2008
Nickel plated Steel
13.50 grams
30.00 mm
23 Jun 2008 -- 50th Anniversary of the establishment of the Saint John Ambulance Services  
50 toea
2008
Multi-ply Nickel plated Steel
12.10 grams
30.00 mm
2008 - Commemorative coin with coloured BPNG Logo using Royal Canadian Mint technology.
K1.00
1975
Cupro Nickel
14.52 grams
32.72 mm
Saltwater & freshwater crocodiles Withdrawn on the 31st of December 2008.
K1.00
Nov
2005
Nickel plated Steel
11.05 grams
33.00 mm
Saltwater & freshwater crocodiles (6 mm hole in middle) 
Saltwater (Crocodile Pororus) left hand side 
Freshwater (Crocodile Novaequineae) right hand side
 
K1.00
2005
Nickel plated Steel
13.75 grams
30.00 mm
Saltwater & freshwater crocodiles (6 mm hole in middle)
launched November 2005
Saltwater (Crocodile Pororus)
Freshwater (Crocodile Novaequineae)
 

Commemorative K5 and K10 mint coins have been produced and a Gold K100 coin exists but they are not in daily use. The fifty toea piece is also used on commemorative occasions and is used for normal street circulation. The bank notes, like the coins, feature the Papua New Guinea Crest or National Emblem.

Banknote
Size Colour Material Introduced
K 2.00 70 x 140 mm
75 x 149.5 mm
Dark Green on light green originally paper
Now polymer
April 1975
K 5.00 73 x 145 mm
72.5 x 145 mm
Dark violet and multicolour   April 1975
K10.00 76 x 150.5
72.5 x 145 mm
blue and multicolour   April 1975
K20.00 75 x 150 mm Red and multicolour Paper
1978
K50.00 75.5 x 151 mm Orange background originally paper
Now polymer
1989
K100.00 75mm x 150mm   Polymer made by Note Printing Australia, a subsidiary of the Central Bank of Australia
November 2005
K100 75mm x 150mm   Commemorative Note
15 Sep 2010

There are still traditional forms of money being used in PNG even today. One example is the Tabu Shell Money from East New Britain Province another is the Bagi from Milne Bay Province.

The K50 and K20 notes are displayed below

The first PNG polymer note was introduced in 1991).

Papua New Guinea introduced a polymer K50 note on the 16 June 1999. The K100 polymer note was introduced in November 2005

 

K20
Twenty Kina notes (K20.00)
 

K50
Fifty Kina notes (K50.00 pre-polymer)

If you want to know more about the currency of PNG the best site to visit is the Bank of PNG.

 
PNG Notes are made in a similar fashion to the video clip.

 

About Michie.NET

This site is about Trevor Michie's family. Trevor has family mainly in Victoria with a son and daughter (and  their families) in Perth, West Australia. He has in-laws in Papua New Guinea - Australia's closest neighbour.

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