Laos is a very diverse country, and its history is complicated, as it has been ruled by numerous kingdoms and empires over the years. However Laos’ history is still rich with culture, religion, and politics and tales of war. The French controlled Laos for many years until 1953 when it became independent from France. A war between royalist and communist forces took place afterwards. During this time, many Laotians fled to neighboring countries as refugees because they did not want to live under communist rule anymore. Despite the issues facing Laos today, there are still many things worth seeing while visiting this beautiful land! You can visit temples built hundreds of years ago; travel through jungles filled with wildlife; enjoy delicious food. Read along to learn about the new Laos Kip banknotes recently released.
The New Kip Banknotes
The national currency of Laos is the Kip. Their banknote family comes in denominations of 500, 1000, 2000, 5000, 10 Thousand, 20 Thousand, 50 Thousand and 100 Thousand Kip being the largest. Well in October newly designed versions of the 10 Thousand and 20 Thousand banknotes were released. In addition, in December of 2022 new versions of the 50 Thousand and 100 Thousand banknotes were also released.
All banknotes maintain the general theme of the previous banknotes but, they feature new updated security features also a more modern and touched up design. They also feature 2020 as the year. The aim of this new release is to fight against counterfeiters and to give the population more confidence against counterfeits. All 4 the banknotes feature a large portrait of former president Kaysone Phomvihane on the obverse.
The blue, gold and white 10,000 Kip also features the coat of arms with a small image of the Pha That Luang Vientiane temple. On the reverse is an image of the Lao-Nippon Bridge. 20,000 Kip has a red and green color scheme with the coat of arms and a temple in the background. While the reverse features a view of the Theun-Hinboun Hydropower Powerhouse.
The Largest Denominations
The red and green 50,000 Kip in addition to the portrait of the former leader features the same coat of arms and temple found same as 2 other denominations. On the reverse is an image of the presidential palace. Lastly the green and red 100,000 Kip bears the same obverse design and features as the previous three banknotes. The reverse side features a panoramic view of the Vieng Xai located in the Houaphanh Province.
