The Japanese Yen and how it works

Established in 1871, the Japanese yen (Japanese: 円), designated as JPY according to the ISO 4217 standard, is the official currency of Japan. Represented by the symbol ¥, the Japanese yen occasionally also uses JP¥ to distinguish it from the Chinese yuan renminbi, which shares the same symbol.

The Japanese coins in circulation are 1, 5, 10, 50, 100 and 500 yen. They are an important part of the country's culture and economy.

The Japanese Yen, coins, and banknotes

The Japanese yen is one of the most traded currency worldwide, following the dominance of the United States dollar USD and the euro EUR. Additionally, it stands as the fourth reserve currency globally, trailing behind the United States dollar, euro, and British pound GBP.

Japan's central bank, the Bank of Japan, issues yen banknotes in four values: ¥1,000, ¥2,000, ¥5,000, and ¥10,000. Furthermore, yen coins come in six denominations: ¥1, ¥5, ¥10, ¥50, ¥100, and ¥500.

Japanese yen quotation against major foreign currencies

	CHF	EUR	USD	GBP	JPY	CAD	AUD
CHF	1	1.0590	1.1773	0.8917	165.9832	1.6009	1.7566
EUR	0.9368	1	1.1070	0.8379	156.1348	1.5056	1.6524
USD	0.8400	0.8942	1	0.7524	140.7285	1.3580	1.4901
GBP	1.1123	1.1830	1.3165	1	184.9457	1.7835	1.9575
JPY	0.0060	0.0064	0.0071	0.0054	1	0.0096	0.0106
CAD	0.6247	0.6642	0.7365	0.5607	103.7162	1	1.0976
AUD	0.5692	0.6052	0.6711	0.5108	94.4956	0.9112	1

Reference Institution
Bank of Japan
Head Office
2-1-1 Nihonbashi Hongokucho, Chuo 103-0021, Tokyo Prefecture
Reference interest rate
0.3 %
Last updated
02-16-2016

The BOJ Uncollateralized Overnight Call Rate, the most important interest rate for the Bank of Japan: what is it and what does it correspond to?

Uncollateralized call rates, such as the "BOJ Uncollateralized Overnight Call Rate" (UOCR), refer to short-term interest rates in unsecured markets between financial institutions. The rate is characterized by the exchange of funds on the contract date between financial institutions and repayment on the next business day . Since 1990, this rate has been a focal point for the Bank of Japan's money market operations. The guidelines established by the Bank aimed to keep this rate around a specific average percentage. Market operations were conducted by regulating the funds' balance sheets through open market operations, managed by the Department of Financial Markets. Total funds within the financial markets were held constant unless changed by: conversions into banknotes, changes in treasury funds, or other transactions. Accurately predicting these changes in funds was critical to effective market operations. In addition to open market operations, the Complementary Lending Facility serves as a mechanism to control the unsecured overnight call rate by offering overnight loans with a set maximum rate.

BOJ Uncollateralized Overnight Call Rate	- 0.1 %

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