Non-decimal currency Non-decimal currency A non-decimal currency is a currency that has sub-units that are a non-decimal fraction of the main unit, i.e. the number of sub-units in a main unit is not a power of 10. Today only two countries in the world use non-decimal currencies. Both of these countries are in Africa. These are Mauritania (1 ouguiya = 5 khoums) and Madagascar (1 ariary = 5 iraimbilanja). However these are only theoretically non-decimal, as in both cases the value of the main unit is so low that the sub-unit is too small to be of any practical use and coins
Pound sterling Later, in 1966, the British government decided to include in the Queen's Speech a plan to convert the pound into a decimal currency. As a result of this, on 15 February 1971, the UK decimalised the pound sterling, replacing the shilling and penny with a single subdivision, the new penny. For example, a price tag of £1 12s 6d became . The word "new" was omitted from coins minted after 1981. With the breakdown of the Bretton Woods system, the pound floated from August 1971 onwards. At first it appreciated a little, rising to almost $2.65 in March 1972 from