Since independence in 1822, Brazil has had nine coins. The first, which already circulated here at the beginning of our colonization, was the réis, a name derived from the real, the monetary unit of Portugal in the 15th and 16th centuries. The country would only know its second official currency in 1942, when the cruise. From then on, due to the problems of the Brazilian economy, the changes did not stop until 1994, the debut year of the real. “Frequent changes are not something natural and desirable. Even less so when you consider the currency as it should be: a national symbol and a factor of credibility”, says economist Joéton Gomes de Ornelas, from the Museu de Valores do Banco Central, in Brasília.
The various changes were determined by the persistence of high inflation, which rapidly deteriorated the coins in circulation, forcing the government to change the currency unit from time to time. The famous zero cuts in passing from one currency to another also simplified people’s lives. After all, if we were still using the same monetary unit as in the 1980s, for example, you would have to pay a few billion Cruzados to buy a simple soft drink.
The first monetary unit was a legacy of colonization; the last one appeared in 1994
19th century
Currency: Reis
Symbol: Rs and $
This currency has been circulating in Brazil since the time of colonization. When independence came, in 1822, the réis was maintained as our monetary unit.
40’s
Currency: Cruzeiro
Symbol: Cr$
It entered into force on November 1, 1942; thousand réis became worth 1 cruzeiro (Rs 1$000 = Cr$ 1). In 1964, a small change: the cruise lost its pennies
60’s
Currency: Cruzeiro Novo
Symbol: NCr$
It made its debut on February 13, 1967; on that occasion, 1,000 cruzeiros became worth 1 new cruzeiro (Cr$ 1 000 = NCr$ 1)
The 70’s
Currency: Cruzeiro
Symbol: Cr$
On May 15, 1970, the “new” name of the currency came out, which went back to being Cruzeiro; there was no cutting of zeros; 1 new Cruzeiro is now worth 1 Cruzeiro (NCr$ 1 = Cr$ 1)
The 80s
Currency: Cruzado
Symbol: Cz$
An economic package released by the government launched the Cruzado on February 28, 1986; 1,000 cruzeiros are now worth 1 Cruzado (Cr$ 1 000 = Cz$ 1)
The 80s
Currency: New Cruzado
Symbol: NCz$
After less than three years, another cut of zeros with the emergence of the new cross on January 16, 1989; thousand Cruzados became worth 1 new Cruzado (Cz$ 1 000 = NCz$ 1)
90’s
Currency: Cruzeiro
Symbol: Cr$
The old cruise is revived on March 16, 1990, but this time the change does not imply cutting zeros; 1 new Cruzado is now worth 1 Cruzeiro (NCz$ 1 = Cr$ 1)
90’s
Currency: Cruzeiro Real
Symbol: CR$
In another record exchange, the Cruzeiro Real is created on August 1, 1993; with the new change, a thousand cruzeiros became worth 1 cruzeiro real (Cr$ 1 000 = CR$ 1)
90’s
Currency: Brazilian Real
Symbol: BRL
The current currency, the real, appears on July 1, 1994; 2,750 cruzeiros reais were equivalent to one Real Value Unit (URV), which was worth 1 real (CR$2,750 = URV 1 = R$1)