A Quick Guide to Understanding Global Currency Symbols: From $ to £

2026-01-06 13:07:22

Why Do You Need to Learn Currency Symbols?

When engaging in forex trading and international investments, quickly identifying different countries’ currencies is crucial. Currency symbols serve as a visual shorthand tool that helps traders instantly determine the type of currency involved and market trends. Compared to writing out full currency names, using symbols saves time and reduces writing errors. For example, $40 is more concise and easier to read than 40 US dollars, and €50 is clearer than 50 euros.

Quick Keyboard Input Tips: How to Type US Dollar, Euro, and Pound Symbols

Want to quickly input common currency symbols? Here are shortcut methods for Mac and Windows systems:

Currency	Currency Code	Symbol	Mac Shortcut	Windows Shortcut
Euro	EUR	€	Shift+option+2	Alt+E
Pound	GBP	£	Option+3	Alt+L
US Dollar	USD	$	Shift+4	Shift+4
Japanese Yen	JPY	¥	Option+Y	Alt+Y

Mastering these shortcuts makes entering common currency symbols effortless.

Overview of Major Global Currency Symbols

Region	Country	Currency Name	Currency Code	Currency Symbol
Americas	USA	US Dollar	USD	$
	Canada	Canadian Dollar	CAD	C$
	Brazil	Brazilian Real	BRL	R$
Asia	China	Renminbi	CNY	￥
	Taiwan	New Taiwan Dollar	TWD	NT$
	Hong Kong	Hong Kong Dollar	HKD	HK$
	Japan	Japanese Yen	JPY	¥
	Singapore	Singapore Dollar	SGD	S$
	South Korea	South Korean Won	KRW	₩
	India	Indian Rupee	INR	₹
	Indonesia	Indonesian Rupiah	IDR	Rp
	Malaysia	Malaysian Ringgit	MYR	RM
	Philippines	Philippine Peso	PHP	₱
	Thailand	Thai Baht	THB	฿
	Vietnam	Vietnamese Dong	VND	₫
Oceania	Australia	Australian Dollar	AUD	A$
	New Zealand	New Zealand Dollar	NZD	NZ$
Europe	UK	Pound Sterling	GBP	£
	Eurozone	Euro	EUR	€
	Russia	Russian Ruble	RUB	₽
	Ukraine	Ukrainian Hryvnia	UAH	₴
	Turkey	Turkish Lira	TRY	₺
Middle East & Africa	UAE	UAE Dirham	AED	د.إ
	Israel	New Shekel	ILS	₪
	Nigeria	Naira	NGN	₦
	Kenya	Kenyan Shilling	KES	Ksh
	South Africa	South African Rand	ZAR	R

Commonly Confused Currency Symbols

￥ Symbol’s Dual Meanings

The “￥” symbol is used across several Asian countries but represents different currencies. In Japan, ￥ stands for Japanese Yen (JPY); in China, ￥ stands for Renminbi (CNY). To avoid confusion, you can add the currency code before the symbol, e.g., CNY￥100 for 100 yuan, JPY￥100 for 100 yen.

$ Symbol Used in Over 30 Countries

Many people associate “$” with the US dollar, but over 30 countries and regions use this symbol for their own currencies. Common usages include:

Currency Name	English Name	Symbol Differentiation
US Dollar	United States dollar	US$
New Taiwan Dollar	New Taiwan dollar	NT$
Canadian Dollar	Canadian dollar	C$
Brazilian Real	Brazilian real	R$
Hong Kong Dollar	Hong Kong dollar	HK$
Singapore Dollar	Singapore dollar	S$
Australian Dollar	Australian dollar	A$
New Zealand Dollar	New Zealand dollar	NZ$

Adding the country code before “$” helps accurately distinguish currencies from different countries.

฿ Symbol’s Dual Identity

In traditional forex markets, “฿” represents the Thai Baht. However, with the rise of cryptocurrencies, the same symbol is also used to denote Bitcoin. Therefore, context is essential to determine which asset is being referenced during trading.

Understanding Forex Currency Pairs

In forex trading, currency pairs refer to the exchange rate between two different currencies. For example, EUR/USD indicates the exchange rate of euros to US dollars, while GBP/JPY shows the rate of British pounds to Japanese yen.

Taking USD/GBP as an example, this currency pair symbol expresses how many British pounds one US dollar can buy. USD is called the base currency, and GBP is the quote or relative currency. Investors buy or sell one currency to exchange for the other, seeking profit opportunities.

Mastering these currency symbols and codes is highly beneficial for conducting international transactions and forex investments.

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