Bank of Israel Governor Prof. Stanley Fisher has decided it is time to change the name of Israel’s currency from the current “new Israeli shekel”, which has been the name since the changeover from the “shekel” in 1985.
The move will cost taxpayers a hefty price since ATMs will have to be adjusted to accommodate new currency, forms, both online and paper will have to reflect the name of the new currency, not to mention legal contracts, websites and hundreds of other areas. Banks and government agencies will have to make widespread changes to reflect the new currency in dealings with other countries. The list is quite comprehensive.
The old currency was the lira/pound, which was replaced by the ‘shekel’. In the early 1980s, in the days of hyperinflation, the decision was made to move from the shekel when the exchange rate to the US dollar hit about 1/1,500, moving to the NIS and setting an exchange rate of 1/1.5. Now officials feel the new Israeli shekel is ‘not new’ and it is time to change. There are also considerations regarding counterfeiting and the need to redesign the nation’s currency every number of years.
Bank of Israel officials confirm the final decision to change the currency name has been made. It does not appear that a final decision regarding the new name has been made but one of the frontrunners is ‘Israeli shekel’.
(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)
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5 Responses
Actually the cost will be minimial. A simple statute can change all contracts without a need to rewrite anything (“any contract in effect on such and such date referring to N.I.S. now refers to Shekel”). Few people will be confused with the “old Shekel” which was only around for few highly unsucessful years.
Changing the screens of ATM machine cost little since they are constantly being reprogrammed.
At this point,reminding people of how the Lira (worth roughly $5 when it came into existence as the Israeli Lira) became first the shekel and then the “New shekel” – is probably something not worth reminding people about. It isn’t something to boast when your “new” currency was worth 10000 of the old one (i.e. 10K IL to 1 NIS).
Some additional currency suggestions:
8 perutah = 1 issar
2 issar = 1 pundyon
2 pundyon = 1 me’ah
6 me’ah = 1 dinar
2 dinar = 1 shekel
25 silver dinar = 1 gold dinar
2 shekel = 1 sela
25 sela = 1 maneh
Besides if they ever have to change the currency again “Even Newer Shekel (ENS)” sounds terrible.
“New but not improved Shekel”
How about “New and Improved Shekel?”