BANK OF ZAMBIA RECOVERED 97% OF OLD BANK NOTES AS REMAINING 3% IS OFFICIALLY DEMONETIZED
By: Thomas Afroman Mwale
The Bank of Zambia has announced that it successfully collected 97 percent of the old currency following the closure of its legal tender period, with only 3 percent remaining unwithdrawn and now officially demonetized.
The Central Bank has since urged members of the public not to attempt to use the old notes for any transactions and warned citizens to beware of unscrupulous individuals who may try to circulate the demonetized currency
Speaking during the Monetary Policy Committee announcement, Governor Dr. Denny Kalyalya revealed that the Bank had conducted nationwide awareness programmes for over a year and did not expect some individuals to still be holding old notes.
Meanwhile, Dr. Kalyalya also announced a reduction in the Monetary Policy Rate by 0.25 percentage points, bringing it down to 13.25 percent for the second quarter of 2026 from 13.5 percent in the first quarter.
He explained that the decision was influenced by expectations of a favourable maize harvest during the current crop marketing season, the relative stability of the Kwacha against the United States Dollar, and continued uncertainty arising from the conflict in the Middle East.
The Monetary Policy Rate is the interest rate set by the Central Bank to guide borrowing costs in the country.
#SunFmTvNews