Pound Sterling (GBP)is the third-largest reserve currency, after the US dollar and the euro. The pound sterling is also the fourth-most-traded currency in the foreign exchange market after the US dollar, the euro, and the Japanese yen. Pound sterling ( £; ISO code: GBP), often simply called the pound, is the currency of the United Kingdom, its Crown dependencies (the Isle of Man and the Channel Islands) and the British Overseas Territories of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands and British Antarctic Territory. It is subdivided into 100 pence (singular: penny). The Gibraltar pound, Falkland Islands pound and Saint Helena pound are separate currencies, pegged to the pound sterling. The full, official name, pound sterling, (plural: pounds sterling) is used mainly in formal contexts and also when it is necessary to distinguish the United Kingdom currency from other currencies with the same name. Otherwise the term pound is normally used. The currency name is sometimes abbreviated to just sterling, particularly in the wholesale financial markets, but not when referring to specific amounts; for example, "Payment is accepted in sterling" but never "These cost five sterling". The abbreviations "ster." or "stg." are sometimes used. The term British pound is commonly used in less formal contexts, although it is not an official name of the currency. A common slang term is quid (singular and plural) which is thought to derive from the Latin phrase "quid pro quo". There is some uncertainty as to the origin of the term "pound sterling". Some sources say it dates back to Anglo-Saxon times, when coins called sterlings were minted from silver; 240 of these sterlings weighed one pound, and large payments came to be made in "pounds of sterlings". Other references, including the Oxford English Dictionary, say a sterling was a silver penny used in England by the Normans, and date the term to around 1300. For more discussion of the etymology of "sterling" see Sterling silver. The pound (GBP) and euro (EU) fluctuate in value against one another, although there may be correlation between movements in their respective exchange rates with other currencies such as the US dollar. Inflation concerns in the UK led the Bank of England to raise interest rates in late 2006 and 2007. This caused the pound to appreciate against other major currencies, and with the US dollar depreciating at the same time, the pound hit a 15-year high against the US dollar on 18 April 2007, having reached US$2 for the first time since 1992 the day before.
The pound and many other currencies continued to appreciate against the dollar, and sterling hit a 26-year high of $2.1161 on 7 November 2007. However, since the global financial crisis in late 2008, the pound has since depreciated at one of the fastest rates in the history, reaching a 24-year low of $1.35 per £1 on January 23, 2009 . In addition, since late 2007 the pound has weakened against the euro, falling below €1.25 in April 2008. A further decline was seen during the remainder of 2008; most dramatically in December when the rate hit an all-time low at €1.0219 (29/12).
The pound appreciated in early 2009 and, as of mid June, is at €1.17. The currency sign is the pound sign, originally ₤ with two cross-bars, then when the currency was decimalised, £ with a single cross-bar. The pound sign derives from the blackletter "L", an abbreviation of Librae in Roman £sd units (librae, solidi, denarii) used for pounds, shillings and pence in the British pre-decimal duodecimal currency system. Libra was the basic Roman unit of weight, derived from the Latin word for scales or balance.
