Serbian Dinars

Serbia's currency is the dinar. $1 is worth 69.5 RSD. This is a lot better than it used to be.

Tito's Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia's currency was the dinar. It's budget deficit was financed by printing more money. After the country broke up, Serbia and Montenegro made up the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and the currency was also the dinar. As Yugoslavia broke up, economic output declined, war broke out, and international sanctions were levied so the economy went to hell.

Yugoslavia experienced the worst hyperinflation in history. From 1990 to 1994, the currency was revalued five times. From October 1993 to January 1995, prices increased by 5 quadrillion percent - that's a 5 and 15 zeros behind it.

In 1992, a pack of cigarettes cost 1,000,000,000 dinars. It eventually got to the point where it was cheaper to use banknotes as wallpaper than it was to actually purchase wallpaper.

A 500 billion dinar note was worth just a few dollars. It's sad to be a billionaire and still be broke.

With all of the different currencies floating around it can be easy for tourists to get confused. Someone gave me a silver 5 dinar coin as change. The silver coin is from the Federal Republic days, back in the 90s. A current Serbian 5 dinar coin is gold. I guess I got cheated. Oh well, 5 dinars = 7¢ so I guess I'll survive.