Best Bitcoin Exchange for Malawi

Malawi’s economy is based on agriculture and substantial support from the World Bank and the IMF. Its financial sector is relatively small even by regional standards, with only 10% of the population having access to banking services. Malawi’s banking system offers a variety of conventional financial services with an increasing focus on inferior products. Malawi’s financial system depends heavily on the stability of the Malawian Kwacha, the country’s official currency. Rising inflation in Malawi has had a negative impact on the Malawian Kwacha, leading to a devaluation of the financial sector.

Malawian Kwacha

Both Malawi and Zambia use Kwacha as their official currency. Although adopted on the basis of the Zambian Kwacha, the Malawi Kwacha and Zambia Kwacha are two different currencies and cannot be used synonymously. The word Kwacha is taken from a Bemba word which means “dawn” and reflects the Zambian people’s motto “New morning of freedom”. Malawi Kwacha had been the official currency of Malawi since 1971 and replaced several other currencies, including the South African Malawi Pound Rand and Rhodesian Dollar. It replaced the Malawian pound, which had been used at a fixed rate of two Kwacha for each pound since independence in 1964. From 2014, a British pound exchanged 227,681 Kwacha and a South African rank 149.8 Kwacha. At the time of the currency change in 1971, the Malawian currency was already decimated. The Malawian Kwacha is divided into 100 Tambalas and its ISO 4217 code is MWK. It is often represented by the symbol MK. In 2012 Malawi lowered its currency peg to the US dollar, which led to a significant devaluation of the Kwacha by about 50%.

Coins

The first coins were introduced in 1971, when Malawi accepted the Kwacha. The coins were in various denominations including 1, 2, 5 and 10 Tambalas. 20 Tambalas and a Kwacha coin were added to the existing coin denominations in 50, while 1986- and 5-Kwacha coins bearing a coin date of 10 were introduced in January 2001. New Kwacha coins were introduced in 2007, 2012, 1 and 5. One and two Tambala coins are made of copper plated steel, while one Kwacha coin is made of brass plated steel.

Banknotes

Banknotes from 1964 were published next to the first coins in 1971 and were in the denominations of Tambala and Kwacha. In 1973 the 2 Kwacha Notes were inserted and in their place the 5 Kwacha Notes were inserted. In 1883 20 Kwacha Notes were put into circulation. Between 1986 and 1992, 50 Tambala and 1 Kwacha Notes were withdrawn from circulation, while 50, 100, 200 and 500 Kwacha Notes were introduced between 1993 and 2001. To alleviate the alarming shortage of cash in the country, 2,000 notes were put into circulation. From 2008, seven denominations of banknotes will be in circulation, ranging from 20 to 2000 Kwacha. The Reserve Bank of Malawi is committed to revising its new banknote family to make it user-friendly for the blind.

At a glance

• Currency code: MWK
• Banknotes are available in denominations of 500, 200, 100, 50, 20, 10 and 5 MWK. Coins with a denomination of 1 MWK and 50, 20, 10, 5, 2 and 1 Tambala are in circulation, but the smaller denominations are almost worthless and hard to find.
• Currency exchange: US Dollar, Euro, British Pound and South African Rand can be changed without problems. It is advisable to take US dollars and pounds sterling in cash with you.
• Credit cards: the major hotels and restaurants in the capital accept the most popular credit cards such as Visa, MasterCard, Diners Club and American Express (5% to 10% commission!). In the Stanbic and National Bank and in some exchange offices you can withdraw cash by credit card.
• Traveler’s Cheques: It is recommended that traveller’s cheques be made out in US dollars. These can be cashed at banks, exchange offices and hotels in major cities. The original purchase receipt of the traveller’s cheques is required. Otherwise, cash payment is almost exclusively possible.
• ATMs: International cards are accepted from Stanbic and National Bank machines. In all major cities you will find these banks’ ATMs.
• Foreign exchange regulations: Import of local currency and foreign currencies is limited to 3,000 MWK. The export of the local currency and foreign currencies must be declared.
• Bank opening hours: Mon – Fri 8.00 – 15.30 o’clock