BREAKING NEWS……NEW CURRENCY TO HIT THE MARKET AS GOVERNMENT ORDERS BOZ TO PRINT DIFFERENT KWACHA NOTES……
By KBN TV Reporter
The Bank of Zambia has printed a new currency and will be phasing out the current notes in the early part of this year, KBN TV can reveal.
Impeccable sources have told KBN TV exclusively that the currency change operation has been a tightly guarded secret that very few Central Bank employees are aware of the detail.
Anonymous sources have revealed that the President ordered a change to the currency on suspicion that the former regime may be holding on to starches of the current notes out of circulation.
“This explains why today Zambia has a lot of soiled Kwacha notes in circulation because BoZ has been working on a plan to phase out the current print of the local currency instead of reprinting,” the source said.
Financial experts have said once the currency change is effected, anyone found in possession of large amounts of the current print of the Kwacha will have to justify the source.
“This change to the currency is targeted at punishing some criminal elements within the former PF regime who are suspected of keeping a lot of cash out of circulation,” the source said.
However, a BoZ financial security expert argued that “if there are new notes, it’s to improve features and durability. Changing notes doesn’t solve the problem of people holding on to old currency. You simply cannot put a short time frame because it’s the rural people who suffer. They have to travel long distances to banks to change very small amounts,” he said.
Based on experience, the source added “I am sure you have witnessed the intense publicity by BoZ each time there are changes to features. There are posters everywhere and even physical public sensitisation.”
He cautioned that changing a currency purely on speculation that some people were keeping large amounts of money was unfounded as the suspected persons may not even be holding kwacha but dollars.
“Even assuming there was such an order to change the currency, the new notes will run parallel to the old notes for a considerable period,” said the source.
Concerns are rife that while it’s believed the BoZ has started receiving the new currency, members of the public as well as the market in general are not aware that a new currency is about to be introduced.
KBN TV understands that the Central Bank of Zambia Governor, Dr. Danny Kalyalya, will soon address the nation to explain the rationale behind the introduction of a new currency.
According to experts spoken to, changing currency features is mostly dictated by security upgrades all depending on the new developments in the industry to prevent counterfeit currency. In that case, the public is always told when there are changes to features. A massive sensitisation is undertaken and a gazette notice is issued.
A senior figure familiar with BoZ operations warned that the administration is going about it the wrong way adding that “even if people have hidden currency, they will still go and exchange it with the new currency and still keep it out of circulation. Today, the Kwacha is traded in Tanzania and Malawi, what can stop people from exchanging the new currency,” questioned the source, adding that “they will just create unnecessary complexities which will not solve the problem they’re trying to solve,” he said.
He said currently, there is a lot of unbanked cash in the informal sector because of unnecessary restrictions. He suggested that BoZ should give a 3 to 6 months amnesty where people can deposit cash without banks asking questions.
“There is absolutely no need to introduce a new currency unless we are just doing enhancement of features to prevent counterfeit money. Right now, it appears there is a shortage of cash in circulation because all soiled notes are being shredded at the Central Bank, but they are not being replaced because so far, the last known print was in 2022, if you look at the bottom left circle of the notes in circulation.”
Some stakeholders talked to have expressed shock that the UPND Government is trying to sneak in a new currency without following the due process of the law.
Citizens First President Harry Kalaba said even though Bank of Zambia Act empowers BoZ to print and mint, the Government can’t just wake up and decide to change the currency without sensitizing the public and gazette notice being issued.
A press query sent to the Central Bank went unanswered by Press time.