ISO 4217 is an international standard established by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) that defines standardized codes for representing currencies worldwide. It is essential for reducing confusion and errors in financial transactions, trade, commerce, and banking by providing universally recognized currency identifiers.
The standard specifies two key types of currency codes:
Alphabetic codes: Three-letter codes that typically incorporate the country’s ISO 3166-1 alpha-2 country code followed by a letter representing the currency name. For example, USD (United States Dollar) uses "US" from the country code and "D" for dollar; EUR represents the Euro.
Numeric codes: Three-digit numbers correspond to each currency, useful in electronic systems and contexts where Latin letters are not practical. These are often aligned with the country's numeric code from ISO 3166.
ISO 4217 covers almost 300 currencies, including both current and historic currencies. It also indicates relationships between major currency units and their minor units (e.g., 1 dollar = 100 cents).
The standard is maintained and updated regularly by the ISO 4217 Maintenance Agency, operated by SIX Financial Information AG on behalf of the Swiss Association for Standardization (SNV). Updates reflect changes like new currencies, redenominations, or currency withdrawals, often driven by geopolitical events or economic reforms.
ISO 4217 codes are widely used in everyday financial contexts, international travel (airline and train tickets), banking, forex markets, and computerized accounting systems to ensure consistent currency identification globally.
The codes defined by ISO 4217 are available free of charge for public use, although paid subscription services provide automated updates and data in formats suitable for software applications.
Learn more:
https://www.iso.org/iso-4217-currency-codes.html