Historical Sketch

The Riau-Lingga Sultanate split off Johor on the Malay peninsula in 1824 and resisted the colonial expansion until 1911 when it got absorbed into Netherlands Indies. After the Second World War there were attempts to restore a separate state, but in 1950, Riau became part of independent Indonesia.

Monetary History Overview

Due to the common history and the proximity to the Malay peninsula the Riau Archipelago's economy had been aligned with the mainland. The Dutch conquest in 1911 did not introduce any change and the Straits Dollar (later Malayan Dollar) remained the unit of account and means of payment. After the integration into Indonesia in 1950, the monetary situation remained unchanged and Riau constituted a duty-free zone. The outbreak of the Indonesian-Malaysian Confrontation in early 1963 triggered the switch over to the Indonesian currency in October. The Malaya and British Borneo Dollar was demonetized within two weeks and exchanged at par into the Riau Rupiah, which was an interim currency to ease the transition. In July 1964, regular Indonesian money got issued, and the Riau currency was withdrawn until end September, after less than a year of existence.

Currency Units Timeline

Currency Institutes Timeline

Monetary History Sources