KATHMANDU: Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB), the central monetary authority of the country, has circulated new bank notes in small demnomiations worth Rs11 billion in a week. The NRB had started circulation of new currency from last week considering the huge demand of such notes during the Dashain festival.
The NRB said it expects to circulate an additional Rs4 billion worth of small demonination notes before the Dashain vacation begins on Wednesday. These comprise of Rs5, Rs10, Rs20, Rs50 and Rs100 notes. The customary practice of using new currency during Dashain creates huge demand for new bank notes. This year, in order to meet such demand, the NRB has set up counters at its currency management department at Thapathali and 16 branches of Rastriya Banijya Bank Nepal Bank and Agricultural Development Bank. The banks are providing exchange facility of up to Rs 27,000 in small denominations. “We are expecting the demand for small denominations to hit Rs 15 billion this year,” said Narayan Prasad Poudel, spokesperson of the NRB. “There will not be a shortage of new notes this year.” If new notes are circulated as expected by the NRB, circulation will have increased by around 36 percent compared to last year. Last year, the central bank circulated new notes worth Rs 11 billion in the denominations of Rs5, Rs10, Rs20, Rs50 and Rs100. According to the NRB, people outside the Kathmandu Valley can get new notes from NRB branch offices. Similarly, NRB is also providing new notes to other banks and financial institutions (BFIs) to provide exchange facilities to their customers. However, BFIs are least interested in circulating new currency as it requires additional workforce and insurance cost to handle it.
