For 10 years after political independence Botswana used South African currency, and was subject to South African policy on exchange rates, interest rates and exchange controls, despite diverging national interests. In 1976 Botswana created a central bank and issued its own currency. Monetary independence, although not freeing Botswana from many forms of dependence on South Africa, has enabled the government to revalue the currency, establish its own pattern of interest rates and exchange controls, and build up new financial expertise in the Bank of Botswana.