Peru wasted English currency (5)
I believe the answer is:
rupee
'currency' is the definition.
(eg currency of India)
'peru wasted english' is the wordplay.
'wasted' indicates anagramming the letters.
'english' becomes 'e' (abbreviation).
'peru' with letters rearranged gives 'rupe'.
'rupe'+'e'='RUPEE'
(Other definitions for rupee that I've seen before include "Unit of money in India" , "Indian bread" , "100 paise" , "low cost in Pakistan?" , "Indian rhino" .)