Netherlands Antilles Guilder (ANG)

What Is the Netherlands Antilles Guilder (ANG)?

The Netherlands Antilles guilder (ANG) is the currency of the Caribbean island countries Curaçao and Sint Maarten. Also abbreviated as NAƒ, the official exchange rate is 1.79 Netherlands Antilles guilders to the U.S. dollar.

Curaçao and Sint Maarten are autonomous countries within the Kingdom of the Netherlands, and were among the members that formed the single autonomous country, the Netherlands Antilles, until its dissolution in 2010.

Understanding the Antilles Guilder

The Antilles guilder served as the currency of the Netherlands Antilles until its dissolution in 2010. The Netherlands Antilles was comprised of Aruba, Bonaire, Curaçao, Saba, Sint Eustatius and Sint Maarten, and existed as a single autonomous country within the Kingdom of the Netherlands.

Aruba left the Netherlands Antilles in 1986 and became an autonomous country within the Kingdom of the Netherlands. Following the dissolution of the Netherlands Antilles, Bonaire, Sint Eustatius, and Saba became special municipalities similar to other municipalities within the European part of the Netherlands. Curaçao and Sint Maarten opted for greater self governance. Along with the Netherlands and Aruba, they comprise the four autonomous countries within the Kingdom of the Netherlands.

Bonaire, Sint Eustatius, and Saba have adopted the U.S. dollar as their currency, which is known as dollarization. Curaçao and Sint Maarten continue to use the Netherlands Antilles guilder, while Aruba issues the Aruba Florin.

How the Antilles Guilder Works

The Netherlands Antilles guilder is sometimes called the Antillean guilder. The ANG is subdivided into 100 cents. Coins come in denominations of 1, 5, 10, 25 and 50 cents, and 1, 2½ and 5 guilder pieces. Banknotes come in denominations of 10, 25, 50 and 100 guilders, all of which feature a unique bird of the region on one side of the bill.

Curaçao and Sint Maarten have explored replacing the Netherlands Antilles guilder with a new currency known as the Caribbean guilder (CMg), the value of which would be pegged at 1.79 to the U.S. dollar. However, the adoption of this currency has been delayed owing to political negotiations concerning the location and governance of a new central bank.

As a result, Centrale Bank van Curacao en Sint Maarten has ceased printing new banknotes in anticipation of the new currency roll out. Because of this, the islands are now expected to run out of physical coins and bills within the next few years. Consequently, Curaçao and Sint Maarten may need to adopt an alternative currency to function in parallel, such as the USD or the euro.