The currency abbreviation for the Macanese pataca, the currency for Macau. The Macanese pataca is made up of 100 avo or 10 ho, and is often presented with the symbol MOP$ (ex. MOP$100). The Macanese pataca is 100% backed by the foreign exchange reserves of the Hong Kong dollar (HKD). 



|||The Macanese pataca was first introduced in 1894 and was equivalent to the Mexican peso, Spanish dollar and the Hong Kong dollar - which were all equivalent at that time, replacing the Portuguese real at a rate of 450:1. The pataca was initially pegged to the Hong Kong dollar at par, but from 1935 until 1976, it was pegged to the Portuguese escudo. The peg returned to the Hong Kong dollar in 1977.