Iraqi Dinar

[stillbr]

well not exactly stocks..but this is the best place for it I guess.

What do yall think about investing in Iraqi Dinar. Right now 1 million dinar can be bought for about $800US. The Dinar is not on the world exchange market yet.

[midas]

1. How would you buy this currency?
2. Why would you buy this currency?
3. Have you ever bought currency as an investment before?

[Sniper]

1. There are many currency dealers, including some online.

2. Prior to United Nations sanctions, the Iraqi dinar traded at 3.35 per U.S. dollar, and prior to the war in Iraq, the Iraqi dinar traded at .33 U.S. Dollars. During major combat operations, the Iraqi dinar declined to an all time low. However, after major combat operations, the value of the dinar increased 25%. Countries such as Germany (post WWII) and Kuwait (post Iraqi invasion) experienced a similar devaluation of their currency, but both countries recovered. Today, the dinar has increased from 3,500 against the dollar during the U.S. led invasion last year to 1,400 against the U.S. dollar. Imagine the growth potential of the Iraqi dinar once Iraq recovers and begins to enjoy the potential revenue of a country rich in oil and other natural resources. (note: copied off one of the dealer sites)

For completeness, I am not endorsing this, however, this might be viewed by some similar to a pre-ipo investment in a developing company (country in this case). Foreign exchange of currencies is the largest market in the world, with significant risk factors.

[Autocratic]

You're assuming that Iraq will recover within the next, say, 30 years. That's more of a gamble than saying the same thing about Germany or Japan after WWII.

[stillbr]

[ QUOTE ]
You're assuming that Iraq will recover within the next, say, 30 years. That's more of a gamble than saying the same thing about Germany or Japan after WWII.

[/ QUOTE ]

I dont really know anything about investing. I know I am willing to lose $800 if it seems to possibly be a good investment. I just wanted to see what other people thought/know about this

[Sniper]

Dont forget to factor in the cost of storage, assuming they are actually going to send you the Dinars.

Another important factor is what is they spread they are willing to buy it back from you for. In foreign exchange, the spreads are usually more substantial than in stocks.

At this time, Iraqi Dinars are not exchangeable at all US banks, so you should determine before your purchase, where you can sell them.

You will also probably incur other costs and fees, you should know what these are as well.

[GeorgeF]

1) Iraq could go to a duel currency system. The 'Iraqi' Dinar for internal use and a newly created 'Trade' Dinar for use in export/import. This system was used in S Africa for some time. Iraq uses a variation of this with the US$ as the 'trade' currency. This is probably a prelude to a devaluation of the 'Iraqi' Dinar.

2) Iraq could issue a new currency. Germany did this in 1924 when the 'rentenmark' replaced the mark. 1 trillion marks bought 1 rentenmark (if I remember correctly). Not good news for mark holders weighting for a big gain. BTW, you might be expected to travel to Iraq to exchange your notes during the limited exchange window.

3) Iraq could go kerbluey and degenerate into a civil war. It might be worth researching the best investments in Lebanon during it's civil war period. Iraq might also be carved up and split amoung the surrounding nations.

4) If you insist on this, try mint unc gem quality blah blah blah Iraq coins. If Iraq stops existing as a nation they coins will likely become valuable. Check out the price on a '69 Biafra silver mint set.

[parttimepro]

Midas left out the most important question: Where are you going to sell these notes? There's no liquid market like there is for, say, euros, or stocks. They'll trade more like rare coins or baseball cards, which is to say you'll be screwed by the buy/sell spread.

[TruePoker CEO]

I think we will give you 1000 play money chips on Truepoker for your 1 million dinar. .... and you can keep the dinar.

[Bigdaddydvo]

Got some when I was deployed to Iraq. More as souveniers, since they had Saddam's picture.