German Rentenmark
| German Rentenmark | |
|---|---|
| Rentenmark (German) | |
| Denominations | |
| Subunit | |
| 1/100 | Rentenpfennig |
| Plural | Rentenmark |
| Rentenpfennig | Rentenpfennig |
| Symbol | RM |
| Rentenpfennig | Rpf. |
| Banknotes | 1, 2, 5, 10, 50, 100, 500, 1000 Rentenmark |
| Coins | 1, 2, 5, 10, 50 Rentenpfennig |
| Demographics | |
| User(s) |
 Germany |
| Issuance | |
| Central bank | Deutsche Rentenbank |
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This infobox shows the latest status before this currency was rendered obsolete.
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The 
Rentenmark (RM) was a currency issued on 15 October 1923 to stop the hyperinflation of 1922 and 1923 in Weimar Germany. It was subdivided into 100 Rentenpfennig.
After the Occupation of the Ruhr in early 1923 by French and Belgian troops, referred to as the Ruhrkampf, the German government of Wilhelm Cuno reacted by announcing a policy of passive resistance. This caused the regional economy of the Ruhr - the industrial heartland of Germany - to virtually grind to a halt. The occupation authorities reacted with arrests and deportations to strikes and sabotage. Those displaced and left without income by the Ruhrkampf and their families fell back on public income support. Tax revenues plunged as economic activity slowed dramatically. The government covered its need for funds mainly by printing money. As a result, inflation spiked and the Papiermark went into freefall on the currency market. Foreign currency reserves at the Reichsbank dwindled.
As hyperinflation took hold, the cabinet of Cuno resigned in August 1923 and was replaced by the cabinet of Gustav Stresemann. After Stresemann reshuffled his cabinet in early October, Hans Luther became Minister of Finance.
Working with Hjalmar Schacht at the Reichsbank, Luther quickly came up with a stabilization plan for the currency which combined elements of a monetary reform by economist Karl Helfferich with ideas of Luther's predecessor in office Rudolf Hilferding. With the help of the emergency law (Ermächtigungsgesetz) of 13 October 1923 which gave the government the power to issue decrees on financial and economic matters, the plan was implemented that same day, 15 October 1923.
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