- Title: Venezuelans ditch largest bolivar bill before its removal
- Date: 12th December 2016
- Summary: CARACAS, VENEZUELA) (DECEMBER 12, 2016) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF PEOPLE ON LINE TO TAKE MONEY OUT OF AUTOMATIC TELLER MACHINE (ATM) FRONT PAGE OF NEWSPAPER THAT READS: '100 BOLIVAR BILLS OUT OF CIRCULATION' FRONT PAGE OF NEWSPAPER THAT READS: 'BLOW TO THE MAFIAS OF BILLS OF 100' VARIOUS OF CARACAS RESIDENT JONATHAN GONZALEZ NEXT TO HIS MOTO TAXI, READING THE PAPER AND COUNTING BILLS (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) JONATHAN GONZALEZ, CARACAS RESIDENT, SAYING: "It's craziness that from one day to another, they want to take away this paper currency that is practically 80% of the cash that one uses on the street because the 5 and 10 bolivar bills are obsolete. So you can imagine-- they are going to take away 100 bolivar bills leaving just the 50 bolivar because we have no other paper that we can substitute in our daily purchases." VARIOUS OF TEOLVIS SALCEDO, MOTO TAXI DRIVER, COUNTING BILLS (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) TEOLVIS SALCEDO, MOTO TAXI DRIVER, SAYING: "They are only giving us three days’ notice before they withdraw the bill. What are we going to do? We can't go running to a bank to deposit it so, after Thursday, what are people going to do? We can't go running because the 100 bolivar bills aren't any good. It's not logical. This should come out bit by bit because, besides, there's a new coin and that will devaluate this bill too much. So we, the regular people and the Venezuelans, are the people who are affected by this." PEOPLE WALKING DOWN STREET MAN SELLING FRUIT AT HIS FRUIT STAND VARIOUS OF PEOPLE COUNTING BILLS PEOPLE WALKING INTERIOR AND JUSTICE MINISTER NESTOR REVEROL MEETING WITH VENEZUELAN BANKING ASSOCIATION OFFICIALS REVEROL DURING MEETING PEOPLE AT MEETING REVEROL DURING MEETING (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) NESTOR REVEROL, VENEZUELAN INTERIOR AND JUSTICE MINISTER, SAYING: "An investigation has been ordered over the flight of these 100 bolivar high denomination bills from our country." VARIOUS OF PEOPLE AT MEETING MEETING BETWEEN REVEROL AND BANKING OFFICIALS (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) NESTOR REVEROL, VENEZUELAN INTERIOR AND JUSTICE MINISTER, SAYING: "Through NGOs, U.S. organizations planned this financial coup to suffocate our country and create general unrest in our people, within the economic war." MEETING BETWEEN REVEROL AND BANKING OFFICIALS
- Embargoed: 27th December 2016 19:00
- Keywords: bills bolivar currency 100
- Location: CARACAS, VENEZUELA
- City: CARACAS, VENEZUELA
- Country: Venezuela
- Reuters ID: LVA0015CKXKXV
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: Venezuelans are hastily dumping the country's 100 bolivar bill because leftist President Nicolas Maduro is pulling the largest note in currency out of circulation despite having one of the world's highest inflation rates.
Maduro said the withdrawal of the bill, worth two U.S. cents on the black market, was needed to reduce contraband of the bills on the Venezuela-Colombia border. The bill will be removed in 72 hours as of Tuesday, state media said on Monday, with new, higher-denomination bills due out on Thursday.
Despite heavy printing of the 100 bolivar bills, 2.3 billion this year alone, they are in short supply in the OPEC member's crippling economic crisis. To top it off, shaky telecoms mean credit card readers often fail.
"It's craziness that from one day to another, they want to take away this paper currency that is practically 80% of the cash that one uses on the street because the 5 and 10 bolivar bills are obsolete. So you can imagine-- they are going to take away 100 bolivar bills leaving just the 50 bolivar because we have no other paper that we can substitute in our daily purchases," said moto taxi driver Jonathan Gonzalez.
People ran around on Monday with a big brown envelope trying to deposit money, only to find many cash machines were not working.
Adding to the aggravation, Monday was a bank holiday, meaning there were no tellers. Venezuelans have 10 days to exchange the notes at the central bank.
"They are only giving us three days notice before they withdraw the bill. What are we going to do? We can't go running to a bank to deposit it so, after Thursday, what are people going to do? We can't go running because the 100 bolivar bills aren't any good. It's not logical. This should come out bit by bit because, besides, there's a new coin and that will devaluate this bill too much. So we, the regular people and the Venezuelans, are the people who are affected by this," said Teolvis Salcedo.
While many business were not accepting 100 bolivar bills, poor people living day-to-day could not afford to reject cash.
There were also logistical concerns over how authorities would remove the more than 6 billion 100 bolivar bills in circulation, nearly half of all coins and notes, and whether replacement bills were ready.
Maduro, a former bus driver and union leader elected after Chavez's death in 2013, said Colombian shoppers and mafias were buying up the 100 bolivar bills to go on a spending spree in Venezuela, worsening shortages of basics like flour and antibiotics.
Venezuela is heaving under its third straight year of recession, pushing millions to skip meals and medical treatment.
The government said Machiavellian businessmen are hoarding goods and bloating prices to sabotage socialism. Interior Minister Nestor Reverol on Monday said criminals were also hoarding 100 bolivar bills in places such as Switzerland and Ukraine as part of a financial attack on Venezuela.
"An investigation has been ordered over the flight of these 100 bolivar high denomination bills from our country," Reverol said before adding, "Through ngos, U.S. organizations planned this financial coup to suffocate our country and create general unrest in our people, within the economic war."
He showed photos of stacks of bolivar bills, but presented no further evidence.
Economists scoff at the official line, pointing instead at strict currency controls and price fixing that hurt imports and reduce incentives for production. They said Maduro's measure will do nothing to improve product supply. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
- Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2016. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
- Usage Terms/Restrictions: None