Belarusian ruble

First ruble, 1992 – 2000

As a result of the breakup of the supply chain in the former Soviet enterprises, goods started to be bought and sold in the market, often requiring cash settlement. The Belarusian unit of the USSR State Bank had neither the capacity nor the licence to print Soviet banknotes, so the government decided to introduce its own national currency to ease the cash situation. The German word Taler (Belarusian: талер), divided into 100 hrosh (Belarusian: грош) was suggested as the name for a Belarusian currency; but the Communist majority in the Supreme Soviet of Belarus rejected the proposal and stuck to the word ruble that was usual for Belarus from the times of the Soviet Union and the Russian Empire. In the medieval Grand Duchy of Lithuania of which Belarus was a major part, the word ruble has also been used as a name for a currency in circulation (see Lithuanian long currency).

From the collapse of the Soviet Union until May 1992, the Soviet ruble circulated in Belarus alongside the Belarusian ruble. New Russian banknotes also circulated in Belarus, but they were replaced by notes issued by the National Bank of the Republic of Belarus in May 1992. The first post-Soviet Belarusian ruble was assigned the ISO code BYB and replaced the Soviet currency at the rate of 1 Belarusian ruble = 10 Soviet rubles. It took about two years before the ruble became the official currency of the country.

Second ruble, 2000 – 2016

In 2000, a new ruble was introduced (ISO 4217 code BYR), replacing the first at a rate of 1 BYR = 1,000 BYB. This was redenomination with three zeros removed. Only banknotes have been issued, with the only coins issued being commemoratives for collectors.

Monetary integration with Russia

From the beginning of his presidency in 1994, Alexander Lukashenko began to suggest the idea of integration with the Russian Federation and to undertake steps in this direction. From the beginning, there was also an idea of introducing a united currency for the Union of Russia and Belarus. Art. 13 of the 1999 "Treaty of Creation of the Union State of Russia and Belarus" foresaw a unified currency. Discussions about the Union currency has continued past the 2005 implementation goal set by both nations. Starting in 2008, the Central Bank of the Republic of Belarus announced that the ruble would be tied to the United States dollar instead of to the Russian ruble. "Stanislav Bogdankevich, a former bank chairman, called the decision political, saying it was tied to Belarus' open displeasure at Russia's decision to hike oil and gas export prices to Belarus earlier this year. Belarus' economy is largely Soviet-style, centrally controlled and has been heavily reliant on cheap energy supplies from Russia".

Third ruble, 2016 - present

In July 2016, a new ruble was introduced (ISO 4217 code BYN), at a rate of 1 BYN = 10,000 BYR. Old and new rubles circulate in parallel from July 1 to December 31, 2016. Belarus also issued coins for general circulation for the first time. Seven denominations of banknotes (5, 10, 20, 50, 100, 200 and 500 rubles) and eight denominations of coins (1, 2, 5, 10, 20 and 50 kopeks, and 1 and 2 rubles) are in circulation on July 1, 2016. The banknotes have security threads and show 2009 as an issue date (the date of an unsuccessful attempt at currency reform). Their designs are similar to those of the euro. Even the values of the coins and notes themselves are similar to those of the euro.

First series, 2016

In 2016, for the first time in the whole history of the Belarusian ruble, coins were introduced due to the redenomination. Previously, Belarus was one of the few countries in the world never to have issued coins; this is largely due to the rampant inflation which has been a problem since independence.

Slovakia has offered to mint the coins, and has provided prototypes. The coins of up to 5 kopeks are struck in copper-plated steel; the 10, 20, 50 kopeks coins are struck in brass-plated steel; the 1 ruble coin in a nickel-plated steel composition and 2 rubles coin in a bi-metallic format (with a brass-plated steel ring and a nickel-plated steel center plug). All coins show the National emblem of Belarus, the inscription 'БЕЛАРУСЬ' (Belarus) and the year of minting on their obverse. The reverse shows the value of the coin accompanied by different ornaments with their own meanings.

Commemorative issues

Belarus is a large producer of commemorative coinage for collectors’ markets, most particularly gold and silver bullion coins and non-circulating legal tender. The first coins of the Republic of Belarus were issued on December 27, 1996. Their designs range from fairly commonplace to unique and innovative; themes range widely from "native culture and events" to fairy tales and pop culture topics not related to Belarus at all. A majority of these coins have a face value of 1 ruble, there are also a few denominated as 3 rubles and 5 rubles. All these coins are considered novelties and are unlikely to be seen in general circulation.

Exchange rates

On January 2, 2009, the Central Bank of the Republic of Belarus lowered the exchange rate of the ruble by 20%.

On May 24, 2011, the Central Bank of the Republic of Belarus lowered the exchange rate of the ruble by 56%. Alexei Moiseev, chief economist at Russia's VTB Capital, said at the time that "a '91-style meltdown is almost inevitable," referring to the crisis which accompanied the dissolution of the Soviet Union.

On October 20, 2011 the exchange rate of the Belarus ruble dropped 34.2% (from Br 5,712 to Br 8,680 per USD) when it was fully floated following demands to do so by Russia and the IMF.

In January 2015, the Central Bank of the Republic of Belarus devalued its currency by 23% against the United States dollar despite efforts to keep Russia's ruble crisis from spreading across the border. As of Sunday, February 1, one U.S. dollar was worth 15,400 Belarusian rubles; by Tuesday it fell to 15,450 rubles to the dollar, as per data from the Belarusian Central Bank's website.