Swiss franc: the evolution of exchange rate
Name and unit of Swiss federal standard currency. The unit of the token is centimes, and 1 Swiss franc is equal to 100 centimes. The denomination of banknotes in circulation is 5, 10, 20, 50, 100, 1000 Swiss francs; The denominations of coins are 510.20cm, 1.2, 1.2 and 5 Swiss francs.
According to1the Coinage Law, which came into effect on May 7, 850, Switzerland adopts the silver standard, and its currency name is franc, which is an unlimited legal compensation currency. Previously, various domestic and foreign coins circulated in Switzerland. 1860 or so, only French gold coins are allowed to circulate. 1865, 1865 On February 23, 1965, Switzerland, France, Belgium and Italy formed the Latin Monetary Union, which stipulated that gold and silver coins could circulate freely in all member countries, all of which had the nature of unlimited legal compensation, and there was a fixed official exchange rate among the currencies of all member countries. Therefore, several currencies are circulating in Switzerland at the same time. 1925 when the alliance was dissolved, the Swiss government banned the circulation of foreign coins, and the Swiss franc became the only currency in circulation in China.
After the emergence of Swiss franc, the Swiss monetary system has undergone many changes. 1860, implementing the double standard system of gold and silver; 1880 prohibits private individuals from casting silver coins freely, which makes silver lose its role as currency in Switzerland; 193 1 On June 3rd, Switzerland implemented the new coinage law, stipulating that new coins should be separated from silver and linked to gold; 1936, under the situation that all countries in the world abandoned the gold standard, the Swiss franc was forced to depreciate and abandon the gold standard. 1936 10, the Swiss central bank determined that the exchange rate of the Swiss franc against the US dollar was 4.37282 Swiss francs 1 US dollar.
1952 65438+February 17, Switzerland determined that the gold content of its franc was 0.2032258g, and re-determined the official exchange rate against the US dollar at 4.37282. After more than a decade, the exchange rate of the Swiss franc against the US dollar remained basically at this level. In the 1970s, the dollar crisis became more and more serious, and there was a rush to buy German marks and Swiss francs in the international financial market, which made the exchange rate of Swiss francs keep rising.
In May 197 10, the Swiss franc appreciated by 7.07%, the gold content increased to 0.2 175926 g, the official exchange rate against the US dollar was 4.084 1, and in May of the same year 18 US dollar depreciated by 7.89. In order to prevent a large amount of US dollar hot money from flowing into Switzerland, on1October 23rd, 1973+65438, the Swiss National Bank announced that it would stop buying and selling US dollars at the official prices above and below and implement a full floating exchange rate.
In March of the same year 19, the currencies of seven western European countries jointly floated, while the Swiss franc still floated separately and the exchange rate kept rising. It didn't fall back until the early 1980s. With the continuous surplus of Switzerland's balance of payments and the continuous increase of gold foreign exchange reserves, the reputation of Swiss franc is increasing day by day, and its position in the international financial market is gradually strengthened, becoming one of the major international reserve currencies.
The reason why the Swiss franc has been strong for a long time is that Switzerland has always remained neutral, its domestic political and economic situation is stable, and it is rarely affected by the war. In addition, Switzerland adopts strict security measures for foreigners' deposits in China, making Switzerland a "refuge" for international hot money, which is conducive to attracting a large number of foreign funds and strengthening the status of the Swiss franc.
Switzerland is not a member of the International Monetary Fund, but participates in various meetings as an observer.