BSP continues retrieval of demonetized peso bills
CEBU, Philippines - The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas-Cebu has continued to retrieve old peso bills, which were already demonetized last year, from circulation.
From January-April 2016, BSP-Cebu retrieved 2.1 million pieces of old banknotes worth P499.465 million from banks, data showed.
BSP Regional Director Leonides Sumbi told a press conference yesterday that banks are mandated to exchange old bills with the new versions even to those who are not their clients.
Sumbi urged the public to report to BSP the banks that only exchange bills to their clients. “Report to us. We can call the attention of the bank,” she said.
Starting January 1, 2017, old bills that have not been exchanged will no longer have any monetary value and will be considered demonetized.
Nationwide, a total of 382.8 million pieces of old peso bills — 53.8 percent of the 711.7 million pieces – were already surrendered to the BSP since January 2015, when the demonetization started, to end-March 2016.
About 10.5 percent — or 328.9 million pieces — of the 3.1 billion banknotes in circulation are old bills as of March 2016.
In value terms, 3.7 percent (P33.6 billion) of the P902.6 billion banknotes in circulation are old bills.
In terms of value, surrendered bills amounted to P150.7 billion, which is 81.8 percent of the 184.3 billion banknotes in circulation as of end-December 2014.
Sumbi said the central bank does not expect to retrieve all the old banknotes considering that some of them may have lost due to calamities and accidents.
“We don’t expect a 100 percent retrival,” she said.
The official added the BSP was looking at retrieving about 70 percent of the old bills by year’s end. (FREEMAN)
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