Question about the Zimbabwe Hyperinflation

[explodingdust]

After the Zimbabwe Dollar was abandoned in 2009, the US Dollar and other foreign currencies became the official mediums of exchange in that country, and still are today. So my question is, if someone had some company stock that they originally bought with the Zimbabwe Dollar, and they now decide to redeem them, what currency would they be paid back in? When I look at stock certificates, I don't see anything on there pertaining to a specific currency, so how would this work? As far as I know, the Zimbabwe Stock Exchange currently trades in US Dollars, so would they be paid back in US dollars even though they originally used Zimbabwe Dollars to buy the shares with. How does this work? Thanks.

[Ad Orientem]

Stock shares are normally redeemed in the currency used on the exchange that they are traded on. If Zimbabwe's stock exchange is using the USD then yes, that's what you will be paid in if you sell stock there.

[melveyr]

Common stocks often survive hyper inflationary periods better than bills/bonds. I think the resilience/flexibility of businesses are a positive factor that is not reflected in measurements such as standard deviation (a proxy for risk). Stocks can survive currency regime changes in a much better way than bills/bonds.

With stocks you own a residual claim on the liquidation value / cash flows of the underlying assets. That liquidation value / cash flow can be denominated in different currencies over time which is a big plus from my view.

[Ad Orientem]

That's a good point. Stocks are in fact a hedge in their own right against severe inflation because they give you part ownership of something that produces goods and or services. Those with most of their money in the stock market generally survived the great hyperinflations of the 1920's (Germany Austria Hungary) with far lower losses than those who were invested in fixed income instruments or cash and who pretty much got wiped out. That's one reason why if you feel very strongly about a sharp uptick in inflation in the coming years (a position I lean towards myself) but are intelligent enough to recognize your own fallibility in predicting the future, then something as simple as switching from VTI to VT can add a lot of extra inflation insurance to your PP while also adding only a bit more risk.

[smurff]

Before 1999/2000, European stocks were denominated in liras, pesettas, deutschmarks, schillings, francs, etc.  Those currencies were all retired more than a decade ago, and those European stocks are now denominated in euros.  Now, rather than a European nation's currency being 100% controlled by that nation, it is controlled primarily by a committee of all the various nations in the monetary union--which is to say, "outsiders." (Historically speaking.)

So if the US dollar goes, it will be replaced by a new currency--and stock values will be denominated in the new.