The coins of the South African pound were part of the physical form of South Africa's historical currency, the South African pound. Prior to the Union of 1910, various authorities issued their own pounds, some as independent entities. After the Union but before 1923, coins in circulation were mostly British, but the coins of Paul Kruger's South African Republic remained in circulation. In 1923, South Africa began to issue its own coins, adopting coins that were identical in size and value to those used in Great Britain: 12 pence (12d) = 1 shilling (1s), and 20s = 1 pound (£1). On 14 February 1961 South Africa adopted a decimal currency, replacing the pound with the Rand.
The term "tickey" was used as a nickname for the 3d coin. It was also used for its replacement, the 2½c coin.
The Cape of Good Hope was a Dutch Colony administered by the Dutch East India Company between 1652 and 1795. In that year it was seized by British forces, returned to the Dutch under the Treaty of Amiens, seized again in 1806 and seceded to Britain under the Anglo-Dutch Treaty of 1814. After the 1806 seizure, the military administrator issued a proclamation prohibiting the export of coinage and fixing the relationship of the various coins in the colony. The relative values were:
During the succeeding years, British coins were introduced, but paper rijksdaalders which were nominally worth four English shillings continued to circulate until 1 January 1826 when British currency became the sole legal tender in the Cape Colony and paper rijksdaalders were redeemed at 1s 6½d each.
The Strachan and Co (S&Co) trade tokens were issued in denominations of 3 pence and 6 pence and 1 shilling and 2 shillings. There were four sets issued over a period of about 50 years. They are South Africa's first widely circulating minted indigenous currency.