Caribbean Guilder
Introduced in 2025, the Caribbean guilder gave Curaçao and Sint Maarten a new currency name and banknote series while retaining its predecessor’s face-value scale. The change separates two collecting periods without an inflation-driven reduction in nominal values.
Quick Facts
Country: Curacao & Sint Maarten
Code: XCG
Symbol: Cg
System: Decimal (1 Guilder = 100 Cents)
Status: In circulation
The Story of the Caribbean Guilder
The Caribbean guilder became legal tender on 31 March 2025. Issued for the monetary union of Curaçao and Sint Maarten, it carries the currency code XCG and the symbol Cg. One guilder is divided into 100 cents.
The new unit replaced the Netherlands Antillean guilder at a one-to-one rate and retained the peg of 1 US dollar to 1.79 guilders. This was a change of currency identity, not a redenomination that removed zeros from prices or savings. Both currencies could be used for cash payments through 30 June 2025.
The banknote structure also changed. The opening series comprised 10, 20, 50, 100 and 200 guilders, replacing the predecessor’s 25- and 250-guilder denominations with 20 and 200.
Design & Symbolism
Each denomination has a distinct dominant colour, from yellow on the 10-guilder note to purple on the 200. Clear numerical identities support everyday recognition within a coordinated series.
Marine subjects and views of both countries provide a shared visual setting for the monetary unit. The contrast between horizontal fronts and vertical reverses helps distinguish the new currency from its predecessor, while allowing each denomination its own composition.
For collectors
For collectors, the first XCG series marks a precise boundary from Netherlands Antillean issues. A 20-guilder Caribbean note occupies the place previously held by a 25-guilder denomination, but it is not an equal-face-value counterpart; the same distinction applies to 200 and 250 guilders.
Keep the two currencies separate in a collection even where denominations coincide. The one-to-one conversion preserved the accounting unit, while the altered denomination range records a deliberate redesign of the cash system.
On 31 March 2025, the Caribbean guilder replaced the Netherlands Antillean guilder at 1:1, retaining the peg of US$1 = Cg 1.79.
