2 Centavos – Brazil

In 1967, Brazil was under the rule of a military dictatorship that had seized power in 1964, prioritizing economic stabilization and growth as a means of legitimizing its control. The period was marked by persistent and high inflation, a chronic issue in Brazil, which eroded purchasing power and created economic instability. The existing currency, the cruzeiro (Cr$), was struggling under this inflationary pressure, losing value and public confidence. The government, led by General Artur da Costa e Silva and guided by a group of technocratic ministers, recognized that addressing the currency was essential for its broader developmentalist agenda, setting the stage for a significant monetary reform.

This context led directly to the introduction of the cruzeiro novo (NCr$) on February 13, 1967, through the Monetary Reform Law (Decree-Law No. 537). The reform was a purely technical redenomination, where 1,000 "old" cruzeiros (Cr$) were replaced by 1 "new" cruzeiro (NCr$). The primary goal was not to combat inflation's root causes but to simplify accounting, restore psychological confidence in the currency, and facilitate transactions by removing three zeros from prices and financial records. It was an administrative measure aimed at creating a perception of stability and modernity for both domestic and international audiences.

The reform of 1967 was a temporary palliative within a longer struggle. While it succeeded in simplifying the monetary system, it did not address the fundamental fiscal and monetary drivers of inflation. The underlying economic policies of the regime, including expansive credit and indexed adjustments, continued to fuel price increases. Consequently, the cruzeiro novo itself would eventually succumb to the same inflationary forces, leading to further currency reforms in the decades that followed. Thus, the 1967 currency change stands as a hallmark of the military government's technocratic approach, emphasizing managerial solutions to deep-seated economic problems without fully resolving them.