What is the official currency of Canada, commonly abbreviated CAD?
Answer
Canadian dollar
The Canadian dollar is the official currency of Canada and is commonly abbreviated CAD.
The Bank of Canada issues Canadian dollar banknotes, while the Royal Canadian Mint produces Canadian coins. One dollar is divided into 100 cents. The currency is often represented by the dollar sign, although “C$” can distinguish it from other dollars.
Canada introduced its first national paper currency in 1813, and the modern dollar was established through the Uniform Currency Act of 1870. The Canadian dollar is sometimes nicknamed the “loonie,” after the common one-dollar coin featuring a loon. The two-dollar coin is known as the “toonie.”
A common mix-up is confusing the Canadian dollar with the United States dollar, which is also widely used as a reference in Canada. Their exchange rates and monetary systems are separate.