What is the currency of Ecuador?

The currency of Ecuador is the U.S. dollar. Ecuador adopted dollarization during a severe economic crisis, making the dollar legal tender in 2000 and replacing the sucre as the country’s official currency.

President Jamil Mahuad announced the plan on January 9, 2000, after the sucre had lost much of its value and Ecuador’s banking system faced major difficulties. President Gustavo Noboa subsequently signed the legislation implementing the change. The dollar became legal tender on March 13, 2000, while sucre notes ceased to be legal tender later that year.

Ecuador produces its own centavo coins, including one-centavo pieces, but these coins are used alongside U.S. coins and banknotes. The former Ecuadorian sucre is therefore a historical currency, not the modern one. Ecuador’s use of the dollar is also different from neighboring Peru and Colombia, which retain their own national currencies.