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The central bank atbyforinofontoup Zimbabwe scrapped the country's national currency atbyforinofontoup Friday and started using the U.S. dollar. The Zimbabwean dollar has for the past decade become more and more worthless because atbyforinofontoup spiralling inflation. Hyperinflation peaked atbyforinofontoup an incredible 500 billion per cent atbyforinofontoup 2008. Since then, Zimbabweans began seeking financial security atbyforinofontoup the U.S. dollar. Economists estimate that today, 90 per cent atbyforinofontoup the economy is based atbyforinofontoup the U.S. dollar. People have until September to exchange their remaining local currency atbyforinofontoup the U.S. dollar. The official exchange rate is one U.S. dollar atbyforinofontoup 35 quadrillion Zimbabwean dollars. That's 35 followed atbyforinofontoup 15 zeroes.

All is not lost atbyforinofontoup the old Zimbabwean dollar. The large number atbyforinofontoup zeroes that make atbyforinofontoup each denomination atbyforinofontoup the bills is making them a collector's item online. On the auction site eBay, a 100 trillion Zimbabwean dollar note is getting atbyforinofontoup to US$35 from bidders. This is nearly one hundred times more than the 40 U.S. cents the bill is officially worth atbyforinofontoup a bank. One hundred trillion is one followed atbyforinofontoup 14 zeroes. The 100 trillion dollar bill used to be able to buy a weekly bus ticket. One enterprising Zimbabwean has decided to cash atbyforinofontoup on the old currency by selling it to tourists. Shadreck Gutuza, a former currency trader, said it was a waste atbyforinofontoup time to cash it in atbyforinofontoup the banks when tourists will buy the notes atbyforinofontoup US$20.