Czech koruna

The koruna, or crown (sign: Kč; code: CZK, Czech: koruna česká), has been the currency of the Czech Republic since 1993. The koruna is one of the European Union's eight currencies, and the Czech Republic is legally bound to adopt the euro in the future.

Czech koruna

česká koruna (Czech)
Czech banknotes 50 Kč coin
ISO 4217
Code	CZK (numeric: 203)
Subunit	0.01
Unit
Plural	The language(s) of this currency belong(s) to the Slavic languages. There is more than one way to construct plural forms.
Symbol	Kč‎
Denominations
Subunit
1⁄100	haléř^a
Symbol
haléř^a	h
Banknotes
Freq. used	100 Kč, 200 Kč, 500 Kč, 1,000 Kč, 2,000 Kč
Rarely used	5,000 Kč
Coins	1 Kč, 2 Kč, 5 Kč, 10 Kč, 20 Kč, 50 Kč
Demographics
Date of introduction	1993
Replaced	Czechoslovak koruna
User(s)	Czech Republic
Issuance
Central bank	Czech National Bank
Website	www.cnb.cz
Mint	Česká mincovna
Website	ceskamincovna.cz
Valuation
Inflation	2.8%
Source	Czech Statistical Office, November 2024
Method	CPI
^a) The haléř is still used for accounting purposes (e.g., financial reports).

The official name in Czech is koruna česká (plural koruny české, though the zero-suffixed genitive plural form korun českých is used on banknotes and coins of value 5 Kč or higher). The ISO 4217 code is CZK and the local acronym is Kč, which is placed after the numeric value (e.g., "50 Kč") or sometimes before it (as is seen on the 10-koruna coin). One crown is made up of 100 hellers (abbreviated as "h", official name in Czech: singular: haléř, nominative plural: haléře, genitive plural: haléřů – used with numbers higher or equal to 5 – e.g. 3 haléře, 8 haléřů), but hellers have now been withdrawn from circulation, and the smallest unit of physical currency is 1 Kč.

History

In 1892, the Austro-Hungarian krone replaced the gulden at the rate of two kronen to one gulden (which is also the reason why the 10 Kč coin had been nicknamed pětka or "fiver" - and has been in use in informal conversation up until nowadays). The name was suggested by the emperor, Franz Joseph I of Austria. After Austria-Hungary dissolved in 1918, Czechoslovakia was the only successor state to retain the name of its imperial-era currency. During the Second World War, the currency on the occupied Czech territory was artificially weakened. The Czechoslovak crown was restored after the war. It underwent a highly controversial monetary reform in 1953.

The Czech koruna replaced the Czechoslovak koruna in 1993 after the dissolution of Czechoslovakia. It first consisted of overstamped 20 Kčs, 50 Kčs, 100 Kčs, 500 Kčs, and 1,000 Kčs banknotes, and a new series was properly introduced in 1993.

In November 2013, the Czech National Bank (ČNB) intervened to weaken the exchange rate of the koruna through a monetary stimulus to stop the currency from excessive strengthening. This was meant to support the Czech economy, mainly focused on export, but people were unhappy about this step because it was set up before Christmas, which led to raising the prices of imported goods. In late 2016, the ČNB stated that the return to conventional monetary policy was planned for mid-2017. After higher-than-expected inflation and other figures, the national bank removed the cap at a special monetary meeting on April 6, 2017. The koruna avoided significant volatility and City Index Group stated: "If you want to drop a currency peg, then the ČNB can show you how to do it".

Euro adoption discussion

The Czech Republic planned to adopt the euro in 2010, but its government suspended that plan indefinitely in 2005. Although the country is economically well positioned to adopt the euro, there is considerable opposition to the move within the Czech Republic. According to a survey conducted in April 2014, only 16% of the Czech population was in favour of replacing the koruna with the euro. As reported by an April 2018 survey by CVVM (Public Opinion Research Center), this value remained at nearly identical levels between 2014-18, with only 20% of the Czech population above 15 years old supporting euro adoption.

Coins

10 Kč coin series 2000

20 Kč coin series 2000