The Azerbaijani manat has been in circulation for 34 years, marking more than three decades since Azerbaijan introduced its national currency following independence.


As Caliber.Az notes, the process began on July 15, 1992, when then-President Abulfaz Elchibay signed a decree titled “On the Issuance of the National Currency,” laying the legal foundation for the introduction of the manat.


The first manat banknotes, in denominations of 1, 10 and 250, entered circulation in August 1992. Coins and higher-denomination banknotes were introduced later.


For a transitional period, both the Russian ruble and Azerbaijani manat circulated in the country (1 manat = 10 rubles). This ended in January 1994, when the manat became Azerbaijan’s sole legal tender under a decree signed by then-President Heydar Aliyev, marking the country’s exit from the ruble zone.





The manat faced severe pressure during the economic turmoil of the 1990s. Its exchange rate fell from 118 manats to the US dollar in 1994 to 4,182 manats per dollar in 1995. As inflation and economic instability persisted, banknotes with denominations of up to 50,000 manats were introduced.


A major monetary reform came in 2005. On February 7 of that year, President Ilham Aliyev signed a decree on the redenomination of the currency, which took effect on January 1, 2006. Under the reform, 1 new manat replaced 5,000 old manats.


The new currency series included redesigned banknotes and coins created by Austrian designer Robert Kalina, who also designed the euro banknotes.


The manat faced another major test in 2015, when falling global oil prices put pressure on Azerbaijan’s economy. On February 21, the Central Bank devalued the currency by 34%, with the exchange rate moving from 0.78 to 1.05 manats per US dollar.


Later that year, in December, Azerbaijan moved to a floating exchange-rate regime. The manat subsequently weakened further, reaching 1.92 per US dollar in February 2017.


Since March 7, 2018, however, the official exchange rate has remained at 1.7000 manats per US dollar.


By Sabina Mammadli