Colombian Peso

• Country: Colombia
• Currency: Peso
• Alias: Colombian peso
• ISO 4217 CODES: COP/170
• Symbol: Col$

The Colombian peso is the national currency of the Republic of Colombia, a country of some 43 million people that straddles the equator at the northern extreme of South America. Following a deep economic recession in 1999, the peso was devalued several times before finally being permitted to float freely, paving the way for a slow but steady recovery. In spite of continuing efforts by violent insurgent groups to topple Colombia’s national government, the economy has remained relatively stable in recent years. The peso is still technically divided into 100 centavos, but the smallest denomination coin minted by Colombia’s Central Bank today is 20 pesos.

Background of the colombian Peso

Colombia’s Central Bank – el Banco de la República de Colombia – is responsible for regulation of the peso. The Colombia peso is a decimal-based currency and is divided into 100 units called “centavos,” but the peso has been devalued so many times over the years that the Central Bank no longer mints coins in centavo denominations. Instead, most prices are merely rounded to the nearest peso.

Colombia’s primary exports are coffee beans and oil, but the country has also developed a notorious reputation for being the primary international source for high-quality cocaine, a stimulant drug that has been declared illegal in most countries. At one point, the value of the country’s cocaine exports in the 1980s was estimated to exceed the value of any of its legally exported products. Government attempts to stem the flow of cocaine – including efforts backed by countries such as the United States – have met with moderate success. For better or for worse, the Colombian economy is now flush with huge amounts of legitimate and counterfeit U.S. cash, due primarily to the international drug trade.

While the counterfeiting of metal coins is not very common – usually due to the expense involved in fabricating realistic facsimiles – Colombia’s $1,000 coin is unique in that it has fallen victim to a rash of fakes to the point where many merchants will no longer accept the coin for payment.

Denominations for coins are $20, $50, $100, $200, $500 and $1000. Denominations for banknotes are $1,000, $2,000, $5,000, $10,000, $20,000 and $50,000.