This archive report was first published on 2 October 2019.
On September 30, the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) concluded its demonetisation process, which aimed to remove old Sh. 1,000 notes from circulation. According to the CBK, the process was a success, with Kenyans returning old notes worth Sh. 209.6 billion out of the Sh. 217 billion in circulation as of June 1.
However, this means that about Sh. 7.38 billion in old Sh. 1,000 notes did not return to the banking system by the deadline.
CBK Governor Patrick Njoroge described the demonetisation process as 'very successful', with anti-money laundering measures also yielding positive results. He noted that individuals holding onto the unreturned money are now poorer.
As part of the process, the CBK will shred the returned money and turn it into briquettes. Notably, the bank has also released 149.6 million pieces of the new generation Sh. 1,000 notes into the banking system.
The demonetisation process, which cost taxpayers over Sh. 15 billion, also targeted counterfeiters, aiming to reduce the circulation of fake currency.
