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BIS study puts median lifespan of national currencies at 33 years
More than 400 national currencies have disappeared from the global monetary map over the past 176 years, a joint study by the Bank for International Settlements and Oxford historian Catherine Schenk shows. Of 568 currencies that circulated between 1850 and 2026, only 163 remain today.
The researchers say political upheaval has been the main driver of new currencies. Thus, waves of decolonization in the 1960s and the breakup of the USSR and Yugoslavia in the 1990s produced many new units. Currency diversity peaked in 1994, when 192 different monetary units were in use worldwide. The creation of the euro immediately removed 23 of them.
By contrast, currencies typically disappear for economic reasons, notably redenomination and episodes of hyperinflation. As a result, the median lifespan of a national currency is just 33 years, and nearly one quarter of monetary systems fail to last a decade.
The study notes that, despite this long‑run consolidation, local exchange rate dynamics remain lively. In October, the Russian ruble was the world’s second‑best performer against the US dollar, gaining 4.65% over the month. The Colombian peso led global gains (+5%), followed by the Norwegian krone (+4.05%), the Swedish krona (+1.73%), and the Canadian dollar (+1.59%) completing the top five.
Published 12 November 2026
© InstaFintech Group
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© InstaFintech Group
