Doha, November 18 (QNA) – The logo of the Riyal – Qatar’s national currency, symbolizes the country’s economy and is the basis of its monetary transactions. As the guests of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 begin to arrive, they will be using the Qatari Riyal in cash transactions, in restaurants, shopping malls, hotels and stadiums.
The State of Qatar is characterized by the absence of a ‘black market’ for currency, which means that the World Cup guests will enjoy the advantage of a fixed and unified exchange rate. Qatar Central Bank (QCB) has adopted a policy of fixing the exchange rate of the Qatari riyal against the US dollar at the level of 3.64 riyal/dollar, considering that the cornerstone of its monetary policy.
The adherence to the peg was highly credible, enabling it to be officially approved by Decree No. 34 issued in July 2001.
Local commercial banks and exchange shops deal with the public at the exchange rate set by QCB for the riyal against the dollar, with the addition of a small margin in the range of 0.24 percent.
Banks and exchange houses deal in other currencies at the exchange rates that are determined according to the exchange rate of the riyal against the dollar on one hand, and the prices of those currencies against the dollar as in global markets, on the other hand.
A total of 32 countries qualified for the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022: 13 from Europe, 4 from South America, 5 from Asia – along with host country Qatar, 5 from Africa, and 4 from North, Central America and the Caribbean. Qatar’s national currency, the riyal, will unite the fans of these teams who are coming from all around the globe, with their different languages and national currencies.
The Qatari riyal has gone through many stages since it was first issued in 1973 until now, as after Qatar’s independence in 1971 and its quest to achieve its national renaissance, the country began building state institutions and entities.
The national currency, which is among the stable and strong national currencies at the global level, was minted due to its association with one of the strongest Arab economies.
The national currency is one of the most prominent concepts in economic activities that have witnessed a wide development over the past decades and centuries, which are closely related to the development of economic sciences and the massive expansion situation that the world has witnessed during the past two centuries in particular.
In May 19, 1973, the Qatar Monetary Agency minted the first Qatari riyal banknotes, which included denominations (1, 5, 10, 50, 100, 500 riyals).
The designs of the first issued edition of the Qatari riyal carried images inspired by architecture and manifestations of architectural development in Qatar, including prints of ports, mosques, and other buildings such as the National Museum at the time.
These banknotes were made using the latest security technologies used at the time, including fluorescent ink and security tape, and of high quality paper.
The printing of the second issued edition of Qatari banknotes began in 1981, on which new images have been printed, including a steel factory and agricultural activities, as well as developed copies of previous images, such as the image of the Qatar National Museum.
After that, QCB took over the task of issuing the third edition in 1996, followed by the fourth issue in 2003. Minor modifications were made to the designs of banknotes, including changing the name of the authority responsible for the issue.
On the occasion of Qatar National Day Dec. 18, 2020, QCB launched the fifth issued edition, which included 7 denominations of banknotes (1, 5, 10, 50, 100, 200, 500 riyals) – introducing the new denomination of 200 riyals for the first time in the history of Qatari currency.
The latest edition was distinguished by unique designs that reflect the history of the State of Qatar, such as the National Museum of Qatar, the Museum of Islamic Art and the palace of Sheikh Abdullah bin Jassim Al-Thani.
The fifth edition of the Qatari currency also included high standards, the most prominent of which was the QR 500, which is the first denomination in the world to carry accurate and compact optical tape Nexus as a unique security mark provided by the printing company, which is an upgrade and a combination of the latest set of security tag threads.
This new security feature helps ensure that QCB is at the fore in anti-counterfeiting technology and protects banknotes from being tampered with.
The fifth issued edition of Qatar Central Bank (QCB) banknotes won the High Security Printing (HSP) Banknote Collection Award across Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA) for 2021.
It is noteworthy that the qualifying countries for the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022, which will be held from Nov. 20 to Dec. 18, 2022, are: Qatar (host), France (current champion), Germany, Denmark, Belgium, Croatia, Spain, Serbia, England, Switzerland, Holland, Portugal, Poland, Wales (for Europe), Brazil (record holder of five victories), Argentine, Ecuador, Uruguay (for South America), Iran, South Korea, Japan, Saudi Arabia, Australia (for Asian continent), Mexico, Canada, USA, Costa Rica (for North and Central America and the Caribbean), Ghana, Senegal, Morocco, Tunisia and Cameroon (for African continent). (QNA)