​Letter of the Head of the Currency Department
Currency in curculation in 2010
At the end of 2010, the value of currency in circulation was NIS 45 billion, compared with NIS 41.5 billion at the end of 2009, a 9 percent increase, significantly less than in the last two years: 21 percent in 2009, and 19 percent in 2008. The decline in the rate of increase may be ascribed to the increase in the interest rate, which started together with the renewal of growth. During 2010, banknotes accounted for 97 percent (NIS 43.6 billion) of the entire value of money in circulation, while coins accounted for 3 percent (NIS 1.5 billion). Use of the NIS 200 note increased (20 percent), due to more widespread distribution in automatic cash dispensing machines (ATMs). This explains most of the increase in the circulation of banknotes in 2010, as the number of NIS 50 notes and NIS 100 notes in circulation declined.
More than half of the coins in circulation (53 percent) were 10-agorot coins, used mainly for change in public transport. Following the change in the price of public transport in January 2010, the number of 10-agorot coins required for making an efficient transaction with the minimum number of coins, rose. The increase in the circulation of this coin explains 64 percent of the total increase in the number of coins in 2010.
The NIS 1 coin, much used in parking meters and vending machines, accounted for 21 percent of the number of coins in circulation. The NIS 2 coin, which was introduced on December 9,2007, accounted for 2 percent of the number of coins in circulation. The NIS 5 and NIS 10 coins account for just 3 percent each of the number of coins in circulation.

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