Swedish krona
svensk krona (Swedish)
Swedish bank notes Swedish bank notes
ISO 4217 code	SEK
Central bank	Sveriges Riksbank
Website	www.riksbanken.se
User(s)	Sweden  Åland (unofficial)[1]
Inflation	2.9 % (target 2.0 ± 1)[2]
Source	March 2011[3]
Method	CPI
Subunit
1/100	öre
Symbol	kr
Nickname	spänn, stålar, slant, bagare, bagis, pix, daler, para, riksdaler
Plural	kronor
Coins	1 kr, 5 kr, 10 kr
Banknotes	20 kr, 50 kr, 100 kr, 500 kr, 1000 kr
Printer	Tumba Bruk
Website	www.tumbabruk.se

The krona (plural: kronor; sign: kr; code: SEK) has been the currency of Sweden since 1873. Both the ISO code "SEK" and currency sign "kr" are in common use; the former precedes or follows the value, the latter usually follows it, but especially in the past, it sometimes preceded the value. The currency is sometimes referred to as the "Swedish crown" in English (since krona literally means crown in Swedish). The Swedish krona also circulates in the Åland Islands alongside the official Finnish currency, the euro.

One krona is subdivided into 100 öre (singular and plural; when referring to the currency unit itself, however, the plural is ören). However, all öre coins have been discontinued as of 30 September 2010.^[4] Goods can still be priced in öre, but all sums are rounded to the nearest krona when paying with cash.

History[link]

The introduction of the krona, which replaced at par the riksdaler, was a result of the Scandinavian Monetary Union, which came into effect in 1873 and lasted until World War I. The parties to the union were the Scandinavian countries, where the name was krona in Sweden and krone in Denmark and Norway, which in English literally means "crown". The three currencies were on the gold standard, with the krona/krone defined as ¹⁄₂₄₈₀ of a kilogram of pure gold.

After dissolution of the monetary union, Sweden, Denmark, and Norway all decided to keep the names of their respective and now separate currencies.

Coins[link]

Between 1873 and 1876, coins in denominations of 1, 2, 5, 10, 25, and 50 öre and 1, 2, 10, and 20 kronor were introduced, with the 1, 2 and 5 öre in bronze, the 10, 25, 50 öre and 1 krona and 2 kronor in silver, and the 10 and 20 kronor in gold. Gold 5 kronor coins were added in 1881.

Production of gold coins ceased in 1902 and was only briefly restarted in 1920 and 1925 before ceasing entirely. Due to metal shortages during World War I, iron replaced bronze between 1917 and 1919. Nickel-bronze replaced silver in the 10, 25 and 50 öre in 1920, with silver returning in 1927.

Metal shortages due to World War II again led to changes in the Swedish coinage. The nickel-bronze 10, 25 and 50 öre were again issued between 1940 and 1947. In 1942, iron again replaced bronze (until 1952) and the silver content of the other coins was reduced. In 1962, cupronickel replaced silver in the 10 öre, 25 öre and 50 öre coins, with the 2 kronor following suit and the 1 krona switching to cupronickel-clad copper in 1968 (and later being replaced entirely by cupronickel in 1982). Five-kronor silver coins were produced in 1954, 1955 and 1971, with designs similar to contemporary 1 krona and 2 kronor coins.

In 1972, a new, smaller 5 kronor coin was introduced, struck in cupronickel-clad nickel. The current design has been produced since 1974. In 1971, the 1 and 2 öre, as well as the 2 kronor coins ceased production. The size of the 5 öre coin was reduced in 1972.^[5] In 1984, production of the 5 and 25 öre coins came to an end, followed by that of the 10 öre in 1991. Also in 1991, aluminium-brass ("Nordic gold") 10 kronor coins were introduced, along with bronze-coloured 50 öre coins.

In March 2009, the government decided to cease production of the 50 öre coins, which, since October 2010, are no longer legal tender.^[6] The reason could include low purchasing power, higher production and distribution cost than the value and the coins cannot be used in most parking machines and vending machines.

Coins currently in circulation are:

Of the other denominations issued in the past, all 2 kronor minted from 1876 onwards remain legal tender,^[11] although these are extremely rarely seen in circulation. In addition, all jubilee and commemorative coins minted in 1897 or later are also legal tender.^[12] The 2 kr coins contained 40% silver until 1966, which meant they had been for several years worth much more than 2 kr, so most have been bought and melted down by arbitrageurs, and the rest are kept by collectors.

The royal motto of the monarch is also inscribed on many of the coins. The 5 kronor coin was designed in 1974, at a time when there were political efforts to abandon the monarchy, when there was a new young inexperienced king. The monarchy remained, but the 5 kronor was not given a portrait. Coins minted before 1974 have the same size, but contain the portrait of King Gustav VI Adolf and his royal motto.

Recent changes[link]

On 18 December 18 2008, the Swedish Riksbank announced a proposal to phase out the 50 öre, the final öre coin, by 2010. The öre would still remain a subdivision unit for electronic payments.^[13] On March 25, 2009, the Riksdag formally decided to enact the law to repeal 50 öre coins as legal tender. Under that law, the final date payments could be made with 50 öre coins was September 30, 2010. Remaining 50 öre coins could be exchanged at banks until the end of March 2011.

Banknotes[link]

In 1874, notes were introduced by the Riksbank in denominations of 1 krona and 5, 10, 50, 100 and 1000 kronor. The 1 krona was only initially issued for two years, although it reappeared between 1914 and 1920. In 1939 and 1958, 10,000 kronor notes were issued.

The 5 kronor bill was discontinued in 1981, although a coin had been issued since 1972. In 1985, the 500 kronor bill was introduced. With the introduction of a 10 kronor coin in 1991, production of 10 kronor bills ceased and a 20 kronor bill was introduced. Production of 50 kronor bills was suspended that year but resumed in 1996.

In 2006, the Riksbank introduced a new 1000 kronor note which is the first bill to contain the "Motion" security feature developed by Crane, then called Tumba Bruk. Crane AB, located in Tumba, Sweden, prints all of the kronor banknotes.

Banknotes of the latest series are:

Future[link]

On 17 February 2010, the Riksbank decided to recommend the parliament to allow it to issue a 2 kronor coin and a 200 kronor note, the latter a new denomination for the country. It did not recommend replacing the 20 kronor note with a coin.^[15] The proposal accompanies the modernisation and redesigning of bank notes in Sweden. The Riksdag decision was to follow the Riksbank recommendations.

In March 2010, the Riksbank decided to decrease the sizes and weights and change the styles of the 1 krona and 5 kronor coins, still keeping the 10 kronor format. The 1 krona will be 19.5 mm, 3.6 g, copper-plated steel. The new 2 kronor will be 22.5 mm, 4.8 g, copper-plated steel. The 5 kronor will be 23.75 mm, 6.1 g, Nordic gold.^[16]

On April 6, 2011, the Swedish Riksbank announced the names of the persons whose portraits would decorate the new banknotes. These are:

• Dag Hammarskjöld on the 1000 kronor banknote
• Birgit Nilsson on the 500 kronor banknote
• Ingmar Bergman on the new 200 kronor banknote
• Greta Garbo on the 100 kronor banknote
• Evert Taube on the 50 kronor banknote
• Astrid Lindgren on the 20 kronor banknote

On 24 April 2012 the Sveriges Riksbank has announced the base for the new designs of its banknotes, based on Göran Österlund's entry titled "Cultural Journey”. These will probably be introduced in 2015.^[17]

Exchange rate[link]

Most traded currencies
Currency distribution of reported FX market turnover

Rank	Currency	ISO 4217 code (Symbol)	% daily share (April 2010)
1	United States dollar	USD ($)	84.9%
2	Euro	EUR (€)	39.1%
3	Japanese yen	JPY (¥)	19.0%
4	Pound sterling	GBP (£)	12.9%
5	Australian dollar	AUD ($)	7.6%
6	Swiss franc	CHF (Fr)	6.4%
7	Canadian dollar	CAD ($)	5.3%
8	Hong Kong dollar	HKD ($)	2.4%
9	Swedish krona	SEK (kr)	2.2%
10	New Zealand dollar	NZD ($)	1.6%
Other			18.6%
Total[18]			200%

Historic exchange rate against the Euro

The exchange rate of the Swedish krona against other currencies has historically been dependent on the monetary policy pursued by Sweden at the time. Since November 1992, a managed float regimen has been upheld.^[19] The exchange rate has been relatively stable against the euro since its introduction 2002 (about 9-9.5 SEK per EUR), but from the second half 2008, the value of the krona has declined by around 20%, and had been oscillating between 10.4-11 SEK per EUR into the first half of 2009.^{[citation needed]}. The primary reason for its declining value lies with the Riksbank, which has significantly lowered the interest rate, and has not acted to defend the exchange rate as of yet.^{[citation needed]}. In the second half of 2009 and the start of 2010, the krona started to appreciate; during late 2010 and early 2011 it continued to appreciate at a quicker rate. The exchange rate is currently between 8.5 and 9.0 SEK per EUR.^[20]

The euro[link]

According to the 1995 accession treaty, Sweden is required to join the eurozone and therefore must convert to the euro at some point. Notwithstanding this, on 14 September 2003, a consultative Swedish referendum was held on the euro, in which 56% of voters were opposed to the adoption of the currency, out of an overall turnout of 82.6%.^[21] The Swedish government has argued such a course of action is possible since one of the requirements for eurozone membership is a prior two-year membership of the ERM II. By simply choosing to stay outside the exchange rate mechanism, the Swedish government is provided a formal loophole avoiding the theoretical requirement of adopting the euro.

Some of Sweden's major parties continue to believe it would be in the national interest to join, but they have all pledged to abide by the results of the referendum for the time being, and have shown no interest in raising the issue again. There was an agreement among the parties not to discuss the issue before the 2010 general election. After that, a debate could start, leading to a new referendum in 2012 or later, though one would likely be held considerably later than that. Polls in 2005 and 2006 generally showed about 55% of respondents being opposed and 45% in favor, not counting those who are unsure (about 15%). In a poll from May 2007, 33.3% were in favor, while 53.8% were against, and 13.0% were uncertain.^[22]

In Dagens Nyheter, Fredrik Reinfeldt, the Prime Minister of Sweden stated a new referendum on the euro issue will not be held until support is gained from the people and all the major parties, and as such, the time is now at the discretion of the Social Democrats. He added, the request of Mona Sahlin, former leader of the Social Democratic Party, for deferral of a new referendum until after the 2010 mandate period should be respected.^[23]

See also[link]

• Monetary policy of Sweden
• Swedish National Debt Office
• Table of historical exchange rates
• Scandinavian Monetary Union
• Swedish rounding
• Economy of Sweden
• Sweden and the euro

References[link]

Further reading[link]

• Krause, Chester L., and Clifford Mishler (1991). Standard Catalog of World Coins: 1801–1991 (18th ed. ed.). Krause Publications. ISBN 0873411501. 
• Pick, Albert (1994). Standard Catalog of World Paper Money: General Issues. Colin R. Bruce II and Neil Shafer (editors) (7th ed.). Krause Publications. ISBN 0-87341-207-9. 

External links[link]

• Sveriges Riksbank (English)
• Swedish monetary standards in historical perspective
• Swedish banknotes (catalog and gallery)

Mikael Persbrandt
Born	Mikael Åke Persbrandt (1963-09-25) 25 September 1963 (age 48) Jakobsberg, Järfälla Municipality, Stockholm County, Sweden

Mikael Åke Persbrandt (born 25 September 1963 in Jakobsberg, Järfälla Municipality, Stockholm County) is a Swedish actor. In Swedish films he usually has lead roles and “tough guy” parts. He is perhaps most famous for his recurring role as the no-nonsense police officer Gunvald Larsson in the latest installment of the Martin Beck movies. He is frequently the subject of much press gossip in evening newspapers such as Aftonbladet and Expressen. He was also cast to play Beorn in the upcoming film The Hobbit.

Career[link]

Work[link]

Persbrandt has performed on stage with the Royal Dramatic Theatre in Stockholm and numerous film and TV roles. Persbrandt is best known for his role as the hardboiled police inspector Gunvald Larsson, in the Beck series of films. In January 2009 he won the Guldbagge Award for Best Actor in a leading role for his role in Maria Larssons eviga ögonblick.

Dramaten scandal[link]

On 13 October 2007 Persbrand left Royal Dramatic Theatre due to difficulties combining TV/film and theater. Many of the Royal Dramatic Theatre ensemble responded in a very negative manner. One of them was Jan Malmsjö who made a strong statement about Persbrandt on live television. Malmsjö loudly proclaimed that "He has pissed on us!", insinuating that it was a breach of contract from Mikael Persbrandt.

Expressen fight[link]

In December 2005, Persbrandt notified police that the newspaper Expressen made false accusations about acute alcohol poisoning. The information was inaccurate. Expressen apologized for its mistake, and admitted that their information was false, but the apology was not accepted by Persbrandt. Otto Sjöberg, then editor on Expressen, was fined 75 000 SEK (≈ 6 800 €, 8 900 US$), in damages to Persbrandt.

Theatre[link]

Filmography[link]

• Rederiet (1992)
• Polismördaren (1994)
• Svensson, Svensson (1994)
• Sommaren (1995)
• Anna Holt (1996)
• Beck – Lockpojken (1997)
• Beck – Mannen med ikonerna (1997)
• Under ytan (1996) as Roffe
• Beck – Spår i mörker (1997)
• Beck – Pensionat Pärlan (1997)
• 9 millimeter (1997)
• Beck – Öga för öga (1998)
• Sista kontraktet (1998)
• Beck – The Money Man (1998)
• Beck – Monstret (1998)
• Beck – Vita nätter (1998)
• Vuxna människor (1998)
• Mulan (1998) as (Voice - Swedish version) Shan Yu
• Dödlig drift (1999)
• Dinosaur (1999) as (Voice - Swedish version) Kron
• Gossip (1999)
• Titan A.E. (2000) as (Voice - Swedish version) Tek
• Beck – Hämndens pris (2000)
• Beck – Mannen utan ansikte (2001)
• Beck – Kartellen (2001)
• Beck – Enslingen (2001)
• Nu (2002)
• Beck – Okänd avsändare (2002)
• Beck – Annonsmannen (2002)
• Beck – Sista vittnet (2002)
• Alla älskar Alice (2002)
• Beck – Pojken i glaskulan (2002)
• Rånarna (2003)
• Tre solar (2003)
• Dag och natt (2004)
• Finding Nemo (2004) as (Voice - Swedish version) Gill
• Medicinmannen (2005)
• Bang Bang Orangutang (2005)
• Som man bäddar (2005)
• Inga tårar (2005)
• Tjocktjuven (2005)
• Beck – Skarpt läge (2006)
• Beck – Flickan i jordkällaren (2006)
• Beck – Gamen (2006)
• Beck – Advokaten (2006)
• Beck – Den japanska shungamålningen (2007)
• Beck – I Guds namn (2007)
• Ett Öga Rött (2007)
• Kautokeino-opprøret (2007)
• Solstorm (2007)
• Maria Larssons eviga ögonblick (2007)
• Die Patin (2007)
• Oskyldigt dömd (2008)
• Himlens Hjärta (2008)
• Beck - I stormens öga (2009)
• Beck – Levande begravd (2010)
• In a Better World (2010)
• Hamilton - I nationens intresse (2012)
• Hamilton - Men inte om det gäller din dotter (2012)
• The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (2012)
• Hamilton - I hennes majestäts tjänst (2013)
• The Hobbit: There And Back Again (2013)

External links[link]

• Mikael Persbrandt at the Internet Movie Database
• Mikael Persbrandt at the Swedish Film Database
• Official website
• Official Fan-Site