Dubai: In its first year, the Foreign Currency Charity Bank (FCCB) initiative received a large response from the public after collecting 122 different currencies, Dubai Municipality announced on Tuesday.
The municipality initiative collected loose change from residents and tourists who travel abroad and no longer need the foreign currency or are unable to exchange it at banks or money exchanges. Several donation boxes were placed across the emirate earlier this year, with the outcome exceeding expectation.
The collected coins and notes will be handed over to the Emirates Airline Foundation, a non-profit children’s welfare organisation, and will be used to fund various charitable causes.
The municipality appointed a team to carry out the coin inspection, collection, weighing and counting process due to the large number of coins collected. This revealed that the most common donated currency was the pound sterling, followed by the euro and the US dollar. The Omani riyal was the most popular currency donated among the Arab countries.
Mariam Bin Fahd, Director of Knowledge Management Department at the municipality, pointed out that the collection process also revealed historical and commemorative currencies that represent the national occasions and events of various countries. “Among them is the British currency that was issued on the wedding day of Prince Charles and the late Princess Diana, as well as the first issue of the Emirati dirham launched on the occasion of the UAE’s union,” she said.
Depending on the origin and date of issue of the coins, an auction for historical coins may take place by the municipality, with proceeds also set to fund causes at the Emirates Airline Foundation.
Mariam explained that among the many governmental institutions and charity organisations that have joined the collection initiative is the Dubai Health Authority, Dubai Courts, Dubai Charity Association, Human Appeal International in Ajman, and Al Rahma Charity in Ras Al Khaimah.
