Today's conversion rate for Zimbabwean dollars is 20,327,000,000 per US dollar. That's 200 million Z dollars for each dropped penny I find in the parking lot.
The rate's apparently based pretty much solely on Zimbabweans bidding to buy US dollars, as there's not really enough economic activity left in the country to calculate a true rate. I have to wonder how much of the activity is due to collectors trying to keep up as Zimbabwe keeps issuing new and larger notes. I'm halfway tempted to see if my bank can get me a little stack of their new 50 billion dollar notes that I could give away as curiosities.
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You've gotta feel sorry for them. The notes are all so hopeful-looking. They've got scenes of hydroelectric dams, grain elevators, village women making bread, etc., all things you might find in a happy and prosperous country. A lot of the imagery seems to centre around the idea of abundant food. I can't help but see these almost as magical talismans picturing the people's most desperate hopes.
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Their reserve bank has run out of paper to print more money, and doesn't have the hard cash to buy more. It's like some grim comedy.
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