British currency in the Middle East pound sterling until 1972, some twelve years after Cyprus gained independence from the United Kingdom. Initially the Cyprus pound was divided into 20 "shillings" ("σελίνι" / "σελίνια", "şilin"), in common with its United Kingdom counterpart. However, unlike the United Kingdom shilling, the Cyprus shilling was divided into 9 "piastres" ("γρόσι" / "γρόσια", "kuruş"), thus establishing a nomenclature link to earlier Ottoman currency. The piastre was itself divided into 40 "para" (like the kuruş). The para denomination did not appear on any coins or banknotes but was used on postage stamps. However, the -piastre coin was equal to 10 para (παράδες)
British currency in the Middle East the Currency Board in Cyprus, one pound sterling issued by the Bank of England had to be deposited by the Government of Cyprus with the Crown Agents in London. In 1955, a decision was made by the British colonial authorities to decimalise the Cyprus pound, and in this they used the system proposed by William Brown, a member of the United Kingdom parliament, who suggested in 1855 that the pound sterling in the United Kingdom should be divided into one-thousand parts, each called a "mil." Although this system was never adopted in the United Kingdom, it was used in several