History of GBP

• Abbreviated as the British Pound Sterling ,is the official currency of the United Kingdom.
The Great Britain Pound holds a strong position in the currency market as its worth has
been more than USD for 20 years.

• Ranked after the Japanese Yen (JPY), the pound sterling is the fourth most actively traded
currency in the forex market. The issuance of GBP banknotes is undertaken by the Bank of
England.

• The pound is one of the world’s oldest currencies. The word “pound” finds its roots in the
Latin phrase – “libra pondo”, a term which was indicative of weight in ancient Rome

• GBP was officially divided into 100 pence in February 1971. Today, 100 pence constitutes 1
pound.
 Historical events that noticeably impacted GBP to INR rate
1. Devaluation of the pound in 1949
UK’s Labor Chancellor Hugh Dalton put forth a deflationary budget proposal in 1947 to
enhance balance of trade and handle the management of excessive debt.

The Dalton devaluation move was intended to scale back inflation and stabilize exchange rates.

2. Pound in your pocket” devaluation – 1967

The 1967 pound in your pocket devaluation led by Prime Minister Harold Wilson was an
effort to induce economic process .
Unfortunately the move clothed to be a national failure on all fronts. Wilson assured the
citizens during a live broadcast that the devaluation which was close to follow would haven't
any adverse effect on the “pound in their pocket”.
4. Global financial crisis of 2008
•  The onset of the worldwide financial crisis of 2008 paved the way for the UK's biggest
economic recession. , it had been caused by variety of things including poor financial
regulation, sloppy investment decisions, etc.

• The crisis had a deterioration within the UK economy as retail sales fell significantly. the
important estate market crashed and big-name builders announced cuts to avoid losses

5. Outbreak of corona virus pandemic – 2020

• The pandemic detrimentally impacted trade in countries all around the world and the UK’s
economy was no exception. The worst part is that the value of GBP fell to its lowest level
since 1985 with the value of 1 pound coming down to USD 1.39.
 Value of 1 GBP to INR since 1947 to 2000
YEAR 1 GBP to INR YEAR 1 GBP to INR
1947 13.33 2003 76.05
1949 13.33 2004 80.96
1966 17.76 2005 80.15
1987 21.18 2006 83.36
1988 24.75 2007 82.73
1989 26.52 2008 79.97
1990 31.07 2009 74.56
1991 40.1 2010 70.65
1992 45.48 2011 74.77
1993 45.73 2012 84.41
1994 48.01 2013 91.6
1995 51.17 2014 100.41
1996 55.28 2015 98
1997 59.44 2016 90.72
1998 68.33 2017 87.56
1999 69.66 2018 98.51
2000 67.99 2019 95.06
• The pound was trading at just below $1.50 before Britain voted to leave the EU in June 2016.
• The value of sterling has fallen since then, driven in large part by Brexit uncertainty. When
Boris Johnson took over as prime minister in July, its value had fallen to about $1.22.
• But immediately after a Conservative majority was predicted, its value increased by 1.9% to
$1.34. That was the highest level seen against the dollar since May 2018.

KEY TAKEAWAYS
• For over 20 years the GBP has been stronger than the USD.
• Brexit weakened the British pound currency.
• In the 21st century, the GBP/USD pair has seen highs of around 2.00 and lows of around 1.22.