Banknotes Of The Pound Sterling
Sterling banknotes are the banknotes in circulation in the British Islands (encompassing the United Kingdom and the British Crown dependencies), denominated in pounds sterling (symbol: £; ISO 4217 currency code GBP). One pound is equivalent to 100 pence.
The pound is the official currency of the United Kingdom and the Crown dependencies of Britain. Three British Overseas Territories also have currencies called pounds which are at par with the pound sterling.
In most countries of the world the issue of banknotes is handled exclusively by a single central bank or government, but in the United Kingdom seven retail banks have the right to print their own banknotes in addition to the Bank of England; sterling banknote issue is thus not automatically tied in with one national identity or the activity of the state. The arrangements in the UK are unusual but not unique, as a comparable system is used in Hong Kong, where three banks issue their own banknotes in addition to the Hong Kong government.
Read more about Banknotes Of The Pound Sterling: History, Everyday Use and Acceptance, The Question of Legal Tender, Issuing Banks and Authorities, Scotland and Northern Ireland, Channel Islands, Isle of Man, British Overseas Territories, The Monarch On Banknotes
Famous quotes containing the words pound and/or sterling:
“Seems fairly clear that you fix a breed by LIMITING the amount of alien infiltration. You make a race by homogeneity and by avoiding INbreeding.... No argument has ever been sprouted against it. You like it in dogs and horses.”
—Ezra Pound (1885–1972)
“The great difficulty is first to win a reputation; the next to keep it while you live; and the next to preserve it after you die, when affection and interest are over, and nothing but sterling excellence can preserve your name. Never suffer youth to be an excuse for inadequacy, nor age and fame to be an excuse for indolence.”
—Benjamin Haydon (1786–1846)