The rial or riyal is the currency of Yemen

Yemen

The Republic of Yemen , commonly known as Yemen , is a country located in the Middle East, occupying the southwestern to southern end of the Arabian Peninsula. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to the north, the Red Sea to the west, and Oman to the east....

. It is technically divided into 100 fils

Fils (currency)

The fils is a subdivision of currency used in many Arab countries, such as Iraq. "Fils" is the singular form in Arabic, not the plural...

, although coins denominated in fils have not been issued since Yemeni unification.

History

After the union between the North (the Yemen Arab Republic

Yemen Arab Republic

The Yemen Arab Republic , also known as North Yemen or Yemen , was a country from 1962 to 1990 in the western part of what is now Yemen...

) and the South (the People's Democratic Republic of Yemen

People's Democratic Republic of Yemen

The People's Democratic Republic of Yemen — also referred to as South Yemen, Democratic Yemen or Yemen — was a socialist republic in the present-day southern and eastern Provinces of Yemen...

) in 1990, both the northern rial

North Yemeni rial

The rial or riyal was the currency of North Yemen, first the Mutawakkilite Kingdom of Yemen, then the Yemen Arab Republic.-History:The Mutawakkilite Kingdom began issuing coins around the turn of the 20th century. The rial was divided into 160 zalat, 80 halala or 40 buqsha. During the reign of Imam...

 and the southern dinar

South Yemeni dinar

The dinar was the currency of South Arabia and then South Yemen between 1965 and 1990. It was subdivided into 1000 fils . After Yemen's monetary unification on 1 July 1990, it was one of the two official currencies used in Yemen Republic until 11 June 1996.-History:The dinar was introduced in 1965...

 remained legal tender during a transitional period, with 1 dinar exchanged for 26 rials. On 11 June 1996, the dinar was withdrawn from circulation. In 1993, the first coins were issued for the Republic of Yemen. The value of rial against the United States dollar

United States dollar

The United States dollar , also referred to as the American dollar, is the official currency of the United States of America. It is divided into 100 smaller units called cents or pennies....

 has dropped significantly compared to 12.01 rials per dollar in early 1990s.

Coins

When Yemen unified, coins had been issued in North Yemen in denominations of 1, 5, 10, 25 and 50 fils and 1 rial. However, the fils denominations have all disappeared from circulation. In 1993, new coins were introduced by the Central Bank of Yemen

Central Bank of Yemen

-External links:...

 in denominations of 1 and 5 rials. These were followed by 10 rials coins in 1995 and 20 rials in 2004.

Banknotes

At the time of unification, Central Bank of Yemen notes in circulation were 1, 5, 10, 20, 50 and 100 rials. In 1993, the 1 and 5 rials notes were replaced by coins, with the same happening to the 10 rials notes in 1995. In 1996, 200 rials notes were introduced, followed by 500 rials in 1997 and 1000 rials in 1998. The 20 rials notes were replaced by coins in 2004. In addition, a 250 rial banknote was issued on November 14, 2009.

Currently circulating banknotes
Image		Value	Main Colour	Description
Obverse	Reverse			Obverse	Reverse
		50 rials	Olive-green	Bronze statue of Ma'adkarib	Shibam city, Hadramaut
		100 rials	Purple	Ancient culverts, Aden	San'a
		200 rials	Green	Alabaster sculpture	Mukalla
		250 rials	Orange & blue	Al-Saleh mosque, Sana'a	Mukalla
		500 rials	Blue	Palace of the Rock	Al-Muhtar mosque, Tarim
		1,000 rials	Pink & green	Sultan's palace in Seiyun, Hadramaut	Bab Al-Yaman gate, San'a

External links