Currencies
- Avo Keinaste
- Sven-Erik Petermann
Base currency, alternative currencies and their purpose
The Warren platform uses a single base currency throughout the system. This currency is stored in the database and used for all monetary values, such as those in invoices, credit top-ups, notification thresholds, automatic top-up thresholds, etc.
However, the platform also supports alternative currencies. These allow users to view and input monetary values in the UI using a different currency than the base currency. An alt. currency always has an associated exchange rate, defined in the direction of base currency → alt. currency.
Alternative currencies are for representational purposes only. They help users better understand monetary values by displaying them in the currency they are most familiar with.
You can configure alternative currencies using the Admin API (Admin API doc -> Set Currencies) or via the Administrative UI.
Note: The exchange rate for a alt. currency must always be defined in the direction of base currency → alt. currency.
If at least one alternative currency is defined in the configuration, a currency selector will appear on the site. This allows users to switch currencies at any time. All available currencies and their corresponding exchange rates are shown in the selection dialog.
Important Notes Regarding Payment Gateways
If a payment gateway is accepting payments other that site's base currency, the additional currency must be defined with the appropriate exchange rate. This configuration ensures that monetary values are correctly converted before being sent to the payment gateway.