Catalog
See full images - free registration
Continue with Google - no registration!
or register with email
Why register? Just to keep bots out of our catalog. Your email stays private - we will never share it or send you anything uninvited. We guarantee you that!
1 Kwacha Decimalization
| Issuer | Reserve Bank of Malawi |
|---|---|
| Year | 1971 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | Log in to see details |
| Currency | Kwacha (1971-date) |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Weight | Log in to see details |
| Diameter | Log in to see details |
| Thickness | Log in to see details |
| Shape | Log in to see details |
| Technique | Log in to see details |
| Orientation | Log in to see details |
| Engraver(s) | Log in to see details |
| In circulation to | Log in to see details |
| Reference(s) | Log in to see details |
| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Latin |
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | The central field bears the full coat of arms of Malawi, featuring a quartered shield supported by two rampant lions, with a rising sun in the base quarter and wavy lines representing Lake Malawi. An African fish eagle displayed serves as the crest above the shield. A scroll beneath the supporters carries the motto UNITY AND FREEDOM. The date 1971 appears in the mid-field below the arms, with the denomination ONE KWACHA inscribed in large letters along the lower rim. |
| Reverse script | Log in to see details |
| Reverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Edge | Log in to see details |
| Mint | Log in to see details |
| Mintage | Log in to see details |
| Additional information |
Malawi decimalized its currency in 1971, replacing the pound-based system inherited at independence with kwacha and tambala. The switch was part of a broader post-colonial restructuring under Hastings Banda's government, which had declared Malawi a republic the previous year. The Reserve Bank had only been established in 1964, making this its first major currency overhaul.
The copper-nickel composition was a deliberate step up from the bronze coinage it replaced, signaling institutional permanence.