Krugerrand

The Krugerrand (; Afrikaans: [ˈkry.ərˌrant]) is a South African coin, first minted on 3 July 1967 to help market South African gold and produced by Rand Refinery and the South African Mint. The name is a compound of Paul Kruger, the former President of the South African Republic (depicted on the obverse), and rand, the South African unit of currency. On the reverse side of the Krugerrand is a pronking springbok, South Africa's national animal. By 1980, the Krugerrand accounted for more than 90% of the global gold coin market and was the number one choice for investors buying gold. However, during the 1980s and 1990s, Krugerrands fell out of favor as some Western countries forbade import of the Krugerrand because of its association with the apartheid government of South Africa. Unlike virtually all other modern bullion coins, Krugerrands have no nominal face value. Yet they are considered legal tender in South Africa by the South African Reserve Bank Act (SARBA) of 1989 based solely on their gold content. This feature distinguishes them from contemporary sovereign bullion coins like the American Gold Eagle which have face values that are merely symbolic and far below the market value of their metal content. The Krugerrand’s "denomination" is therefore implicitly 'one ounce of fine gold' (or the fractional equivalent). The only significant historical parallel is the British gold sovereign, which likewise bears no face value but is legally recognized as one pound sterling. To celebrate the Krugerrand's 50 year anniversary in 2017, the Rand Refinery began minting silver versions with the same overall design as the gold coin. According to the online collector database Numista, the non-commemorative, 1 oz silver bullion Krugerrands have been minted regularly ever since.