Sucre (monnaie)

The Sucre (ˈsuɣre) was the currency of Ecuador between 1884 and 2000. Its ISO code was ECS and it was subdivided into 10 decimos and 100 centavos. The sucre was named after Latin American political leader Antonio José de Sucre. The currency was replaced by the United States dollar as a result of the 1998–99 financial crisis. Currency of Ecuador The Ecuadorian peso was renamed as the Sucre on March 22, 1884, and was then linked to the silver standard. The Sucre was tied to 22.5 g of fine silver (equivalent to 5 LMU francs). Outdated coins were taken out of circulation between 1887 and 1892, with only the silver-backed coins remaining in circulation. The decline of the international price of silver during the 1890s prompted Ecuador to switch to the gold standard on November 3, 1898, with the sucre tied to 732.224 mg of fine gold (equivalent to 2 shillings sterling). The Sucre became inconvertible shortly after World War I began in 1914 due to international political tension. Despite extensive measures to support the sucre's value, the exchange rate continued to rapidly decline. The sucre's exchange rate was eventually stabilized during 1926, at which point Ecuador re-established the gold standard with the sucre equal to 300.933 mg fine gold or $0.20 USD (a devaluation of 58.8%). Following the suspension of the gold standard on February 8, 1932, foreign exchange controls were adopted on April 30 which fixed the official buying rate at 5.95 per U.S. dollar. Once the price of silver rose above the nominal value of most silver coins during 1930s, Ecuador banned the export of silver on May 17, 1935. This was followed by several adjustments to the nation's foreign exchange system as the sucre continued to depreciate. The foreign exchange controls were finally lifted in September, 1937 and the official rate was set at 13.5 sucre per U.S. dollar. The sucre was eventually devalued to 14.77 sucre per USD on June 4, 1940, and controls were once again imposed. The official rate became 14 sucre per USD in 1942 and 13.5 per USD in 1944.