Bangladesh Bank plans to release Tk 250b new notes before Eid

Bangladesh Bank (BB) aims to release new currency notes of Tk 250 billion in the market before the Eid.

The central bank sources said the money would be released about a week before the Eid-ul-Fitr.

“We’ve set a target to release Tk 250 billion before Eid,” Sirajul Islam, Bangladesh Bank spokesman and executive director, said.

He said the initial target is to release Tk 220 billion. Last year, the central bank released Tk 180 billion.

Some officials at the central bank said the decision to release new cash in the market is part of its move to withdraw old notes and replace them with new ones to prevent the spread of coronavirus.

They cited the example of China which withdrew about 600 billion Yuan and replaced them with new ones after the coronavirus outbreak.

Sirajul, however, rejected the idea, saying: “No such decision was taken. The release of new notes is unrelated to the withdrawal of old notes.”

Another top official at the BB said that it is a regular job of the central bank to replace old notes with new ones.

Official sources said the central bank is releasing the new notes as part of its market management as it thinks there will be a big demand for extra currency before the Eid.

Normally, they said, every year the central bank releases new bank notes in the market to cool down the pressure as the liquidity demand goes up high in the market for various reasons. These notes are always a replacement for old notes, they said.

Currency Management Department of the BB said the new notes will include Tk 500, Tk 200, Tk 100, Tk 50, Tk 20 and Tk 10.

Of these notes, Tk-200 notes will absolutely new as the Bangladesh Bank earlier decided that it will release new note of Tk 200 on the occasion of Mujib Year to commemorate the birth centenary of Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.

Officials said they might not need to print the Tk-1000 notes as there are enough new such notes in the central bank’s volt.