The Sri Lankan Rupee (Sinhala: රුපියල්, Tamil: ரூபாய்; symbol: රු (plural) in English, රු in Sinhala, ௹ in Tamil; ISO code: LKR) is the currency of Sri Lanka.

The abbreviation Re (singular) and Rs (plural) is generally used, the World Bank suggests SL Rs as a fully disambiguating abbreviation for distinction from other currencies named "rupee".

[1] Sterling became Ceylon's official currency in 1825, replacing the Ceylonese rixdollar at a rate of £1 = 13+1⁄3 rixdollars, and British silver coins were made legal tender.

Rixdollar notes not presented for exchange were demonetized in June 1831.

Sterling-denominated treasury notes continued to circulate after 1836, along with the rupee.

The legal currency remained British silver and accounts were kept in pounds, shillings and pence.

The Indian rupee was formally established as the unlimited legal tender 18 June 1869.

Thus, the rupee of 100 cents became Ceylon's money of account and sole legal tender effective 1 January 1872, replacing sterling at a rate of Re.

[2][3] By April 2022, political upheaval in Sri Lanka made the Sri Lankan rupee the world's "worst performing currency," according to the Financial Times.

Production of the 1⁄2c ceased in 1940, with bronze 1c introduced in 1942 with reduced weight and thickness.

Coins with the portrait of King George VI continued to be in circulation after his death in 1952.

In 1963, a new coinage was introduced which omitted the monarch's portrait, depicting instead The Armorial ensign of Ceylon.

These coins had the same shapes and sizes of the previous series but were composed of different materials.

In 1978, devaluation prompted aluminum to be the replacement of nickel-brass in the 5c and 10c, while shortly after 1c and 2c were discontinued.

Like earlier forerunner rupee denominations, these were again only issued in limited supply, not intended to replace the corresponding banknotes.

The obverse of the coins issued since 1972 carry the Armorial Ensign of the Republic of Sri Lanka.

However their weights and compositions have been changed to electroplated steel as opposed to a solid alloy for easier identification purposes and to save on production expense.

In the year 2017, a complete new series of stainless steel coins was introduced and is currently in circulation.

The Central Bank of Sri Lanka has issued commemorative coins since 1957.

On 15 December 2010, to mark the 60th Anniversary, the Central Bank of Sri Lanka issued a frosted proof crown size multi-colour silver commemorative coin in the denomination of Rs. 5,000/-.

Sri Lankan banknotes are unusual in that they are printed vertically on the reverse.

All other denominations are printed by the De la Rue Lanka Currency and Securities Print (Pvt) Ltd, a joint venture of the Government of Sri Lanka and De La Rue.

[16] One can buy LKR at the Sri Lankan airport or currency outlets available throughout the country.

[citation needed] On 7 March 2023, the rupee gained 0.5% to trade at 250.8 per dollar, registering a 14% increase after the announcement by the IMF that it will finalize a $2.9 billion bailout for Sri Lanka on 20 March and receiving assurances from China that it will assist in the country's debt restructuring efforts.

However, Fitch Ratings has published a prediction article on 8 March 2023, that the rupee will depreciate by roughly 23%, reaching an all-time low of 290 per dollar by the end of the year.