This archive report was first published on 2 October 2019.
On September 30, the demonetization period closed, marking a significant milestone in the Central Bank of Kenya's efforts to combat money laundering and terrorism financing. According to the Governor, 217,047,000 pieces of KSh 1,000 notes were not returned, making them worthless.
As of June 1, the Central Bank of Kenya had received 209,661,000 pieces of KSh 1,000 notes, leaving a significant amount of worthless notes. The Governor estimated that the value of these worthless notes is equivalent to the value lost during the Goldenberg case.
The demonetization process was deemed successful, with the Central Bank of Kenya completing it smoothly and keeping out money whose owners did not want to be subjected to the relevant checks in the system. The Governor emphasized that the exercise opened a fresh phase for intelligence agencies to investigate suspicious activities and trail the roots and custodians of dirty money.
According to the Central Bank of Kenya, the demonetization process went well, with the following value terms:
- Up to KSh. 500,000 were 62%
- Up to KSh 1,000,000 were 79%
- Up to KSh 2,000,000 were 92%
Additionally, the number of transactions was as follows:
- 96% of transactions were under 500,000
- 99% of transactions were under KSh 1,000,000
As a result of the demonetization process, Sh7.3B worth of KSh 1,000 notes will be shredded into briquettes, while Sh209B worth of notes will be destroyed.
