Before entering the East African currency board: The case of Zanzibar (1908-1935)

Abstract. We provide the first spreadsheet data series and legislative history of Zanzibar’s Board of Commissioners of Currency (1908-1935) and examine to what extent it operated as an orthodox currency board. The paper makes the annual balance sheets and monthly financial statements of the currency board available in machine-readable form for the first time, in a companion spreadsheet workbook and also offers a summary of legislation related to currency and banking for further analysis of the period.Keywords. Currency board, Zanzibar.JEL. N27