Blogs

The recent devaluation of the Pakistani Rupee (PKR) is a stark reminder of the country's economic struggles. In just one week, the PKR fell 18% against the US dollar, dropping from 225 to 270. Over the past year, the PKR has experienced 36% depreciation against the US dollar. With this significant drop, it's difficult to deny that the country's economy is in crisis. Turkey and Sri Lanka have also faced similar struggles, as their currencies depreciated by 28% and 44% respectively against the US dollar over the past year. Such currency devaluations are often accompanied by high inflation, leading to...

Though silver is a precious metal, it is not as expensive as you think – 10 grams of silver is worth just around Rs 700 at present prices. Go back a few decades, and silver coins were common in virtually all modern societies. Silver coins – Indian rupees, US dollars, British crowns and other were minted in hundreds of millions. Many of these coins are still fairly common and are available to a new collector at a reasonable price. If you are a new collector, these coins are a good way to start collecting silver coins without breaking the bank....

Investors trying to safeguard their assets should avoid new and risky bets such as cryptocurrencies. Good old fashioned bullion is a far better bet. Amit Bhandari Crypto enthusiasts have long promoted cryptocoins as a currency which is not controlled by a central government, and is therefore a better store of value compared to fiat currencies. Cryptos were also supposed to be more secure from fraud and tampering compared to traditional currencies. During 2022, both these assumptions were tested as BTC fell by almost 60% and the crypto exchange FTX carried out an old fashioned fraud on its investors. 2022 proved...

Left or Right?  After the death of Queen Elizabeth II, there has been some speculation on the design of coins of the newly crowned King Charles III. One factor, almost certain, is that the effigy/portrait of Charles on newly issued coins will be facing to the left. Prior to Queen Elizabth, Empress Victoria was the longest reigning ruler of UK. Her reign lasted 63 years, from 1837 to 1901. Her coins over this period used multiple portraits, but all of these portraits looked to the left. After her death in 1901, her successor Edward VII’s portrait looked in the opposite...

Queen Elizabeth II (1952-2022) was the longest reigning British sovereign, and was one constant in a world marked by enormous change. She was not just the Queen of the United Kingdom, but also Australia, Canada, New Zealand and a number of other, smaller territories. As a result, she has also featured on the largest number of currencies - coins and notes. Here are some interesting coins issued during her reign, in no particular order.  Elizabeth became the Queen automatically, at the death of her father, in 1952. Her coronation took place in 1953, commemorated on the 5 shilling coin. 5...