Base currency Definiton

Refers to the first currency in the currency pair. It also shows how much the base currency is worth when measured against the second currency. If the exchange rate for the pair EUR/USD is 1.290, then 1 EUR is worth 1.290 USD.

The base currency is the first currency in a currency pair, and the currency that remains constant when determining a currency pair's price. The United States Dollar (USD) and the European Union Euro(EUR) are the dominant base currencies in terms of daily traded volume in the foreign exchange market.

The British Pound (GBP), also called sterling, is the third ranking base currency. The USD based pairs are USD/JPY, USD/CHF and USD/CAD; the Euro based pairs are EUR/USD, EUR/JPY, EUR/GBP, and EUR/CHF. The GBP is the base for GBP/USD and GBP/JPY. The Australian Dollar (AUD) is its own base against the USD (AUD/USD).


Related words

Base CurrencyBalance of PaymentsBar ChartBig FigureBretton Woods AgreementBack officeBondsBrokerBID / ASKBalanced FundBalanced investment strategyBackpricingBackwardationBear SpreadBear Vertical SpreadBozuBreakaway gap