Zimbabwe Gives up on Its Currency

Zimbabwe is killing off its worthless currency as of Monday. Holders of the Zimbabwean dollar can exchange for US dollars at a rate of Z$35,000,000,000,000 = US$1 (that's thirty-five quadrillion).

The southern African country started using foreign currencies like the U.S. dollar and South African rand in 2009 after the Zimbabwean dollar was ruined by hyper-inflation, which hit 500 billion percent in 2008.At the height of Zimbabwe's economic crisis in 2008, Zimbabweans had to carry plastic bags bulging with bank notes to buy basic goods like bread and milk. Prices were rising at least twice a day.

This brings to mind stories I've heard about the Weimar Republic in the early Twenties.

Apparently, some Zimbabweans sell banknotes to tourists as souvenirs. With a Z$100 trillion note being worth about forty cents, that's probably a good course to follow. Heck, if I were in Zimbabwe, I'd probably pay a couple bucks for one.