What are the strongest currencies in the world?

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Starting off the list, the national currency of Bulgaria is known as the Bulgarian lev or BGN in its abbreviated form. In particular, the country's economy is known for its mining, agriculture, and tourism services.

A single US dollar will buy you around 1.78 Bulgarian lev. Although BGN is not the most valuable currency in the world, it is still strong.

The New Zealand dollar or NZD takes its rightful place on the highest tender list at number 15. Its strength has been rising, most likely caused by the nation’s political stability, high interest rates and GDP growth.

In exchange for 1 US dollar, you will receive around 1.44 New Zealand dollars. Even though the NZD is the 15th strongest currency in the world, it beats many of the stronger ones and lands a top 10 place in the most traded currencies.

The Singapore dollar (SGD) is used in both Singapore and Brunei, and they trade for the exact same rate: 1 US dollar will buy you around 1.36 Singaporean dollars.

The Singapore dollar is expensive on the foreign exchange market, accounting for around 1.8% of daily forex trades.

Brunei dollar or BND has been the currency for the Sultanate of Brunei since 1967. The Brunei dollar is interchangeable with the Singapore dollar at face value and both currencies are legal tender in each country.

1 US dollar will exchange for around 1.36 Brunei dollar, giving the BND the same value as the Singaporean dollar.

The Australian dollar (AUD) is the national tender of Australia; it is also used by its external territories and some pacific island states. Although it is not the most expensive tender in the world, it is extremely valuable and one of the most stable on this list.

1 US dollar will get you around 1.32 Australian dollars. The Australian dollar is also the 5th most traded on the forex market and accounts for around 6.8% of daily trades. Some reasons for why the AU dollar is so popular include its stability, high-interest rates, and the view that it holds diversification benefits.

Do you think the AUD will climb the rankings or drop off the list? You can trade the Australian dollar based on your speculations with a risk-free forex trading demo account.

The Canadian dollar or CAD is the legal tender of Canada and is one of the most popular currencies for central banks to hold as foreign exchange reserves, due to Canada’s legal and political stability. Additionally, CAD is a very popular option when forex trading, and accounts for around 5% of daily trades in the global foreign exchange market.

A single US dollar will purchase around 1.25 Canadian dollars, placing it 11th in this list, but its global popularity precedes its value.

The US dollar belongs to the United States and several other countries. It is the world’s primary reserve currency and is held by most central banks and commercial banks globally. Because of its widespread adoption, the US dollar also accounts for around 88.3% of daily trades in the foreign exchange market.

The US dollar holds many first-place titles, including the richest country in the world, but remarkably only comes 10th when ranked as a contender for the world’s highest currency. The US dollar appears at 10th position, as 1 US dollar is worth exactly that - 1.0 US dollar.

The Swiss franc or CHF is used throughout both Switzerland and Liechtenstein.

1 US dollar will buy your around 0.93 Swiss Franc, so the Swiss franc comes in as the first to be higher value than the US dollar. This, however, is no surprise given that Switzerland is one of the most stable and wealthy countries in the world. It also acts as a safe haven​ for investors in periods of economic instability, along with USD and JPY.

The Swiss franc is also the 7th most traded in the world, gaining its popularity as a safe bet when trading or storing money, due to its strict monetary policies and low debt levels.

One of the newest currencies, the Euro or EUR is the official tender of 19 countries, which makes it the most widely used in the world. Countries where it is used include Germany, France and Spain, and it is often known to be the world’s second reserve money. It is also known to be the second most traded on the foreign exchange market, only preceded by the US dollar. In fact, the EUR/USD or 'Fiber' is the most traded forex pair in the world, accounting for almost a quarter of daily forex trades.

In exchange for 1 US dollar, you will receive around 0.91 Euro, or 91 cents.

The 7th most expensive tender in the world is the Cayman Islands dollar or KYD, which is the national currency for the Cayman Islands. An autonomous British territory located in the Caribbean, the Cayman Islands are a major financial tax haven for wealthy individuals and corporations.

A United States dollar is exchangeable for around 0.83 Cayman Islands dollars, making it the only and strongest Caribbean currency on the list.

The Gibraltar pound or GIP is the national currency of Gibraltar and is exchangeable with the British pound sterling at face value. Therefore, in Gibraltar, you are free to use both GIB and GBP.

A single US dollar will buy you around 0.76 Gibraltar pounds, which is very similar in value to the pound sterling.

The Great British pound, the pound sterling or the GBP is the 5th most valuable currency in the world. Although the GBP is not the most powerful in the world, it does keep the title as the oldest currency still in use​.

The pound sterling is also the 4th most traded currency globally, accounting for around 12.8% of daily trades on the foreign exchange market.

When exchanging a single US dollar, you will receive around 0.76 Great British pounds in return. This forex pair is commonly known as “the cable” and is the 3rd most traded in the world.

The national currency of Jordan is the Jordanian dinar or JOD, which earns the position of number four. It became Jordan’s official legal tender in 1950 after it replaced the Palestinian pound.

1 US dollar is transferrable for around 0.71 Jordanian Dinar, earning the JOD a rightful place in the top 5 most valuable.

The Omani rial or OMR is the national money of Oman. Unlike most conventional currencies, the Omani rial is split into 1000 smaller divisions known as baisa. The Omani rial quickly rose in value after being introduced due to the success of Oman’s oil exports and being pegged against the US dollar.

A single US dollar will exchange for around 0.39 Omani Rial, which is nearly double the strength of the Pound sterling!

The second most powerful money in the world is the Bahrain dinar or BHD. Like most Arabic currencies on this list, it is divided into 1000 smaller units, in this case, called ‘fils’. The Bahraini dinar is only used in Bahrain and is pegged against the US dollar.

Of similar value to the Omani rial, when trading 1 US dollar, you will receive 0.38 Bahraini dinar.

Known as the strongest currency in the world, the Kuwaiti dinar or KWD was introduced in 1960 and was initially equivalent to one pound sterling. Kuwait is a small country that is nestled between Iraq and Saudi Arabia, whose wealth has been driven largely by its large global exports of oil.

You will receive just 0.30 Kuwait dinar after exchanging 1 US dollar, making the Kuwaiti dinar the world’s highest-valued unit per face value.

When measuring the value of one currency against another, you are simultaneously buying one currency and selling another, this is known as currency trading​. All of the currencies in our strongest currency list were quoted in exchange for a single US dollar. Find out more about how you can get involved in currency trading forex pairs here and see our trading fees​.

Learn more about trading our exclusive currency baskets, also referred to as forex indices​​​, such as our USD Index, GBP Index and EUR Index.