Joining the league of war on cash, Venezuelan government has declared it would demonetise the nation’s higher denomination notes shortly to beat mafia hoardings.
“There has been a scam and smuggling of the one hundred bills on the border with Colombia. We have tried the diplomatic way to deal with this problem with Colombia’s government; there are huge mafias. I have decided to take out of circulation bills of 100 bolivars in the next 72 hours. We must keep beating the mafias,” Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro said on state TV.
In a situation similar to India, the announcement resulted in an economic chaos and Venezuelan streets witnessed long serpentine queues.
Thousands of citizens rushed to cash machines as the President announced on Sunday that the citizens have only 10 days to exchange their 100 bolivar bills (approximately equals to Rs 678), Daily Mail reported.
The bill, which was the largest bank currency in the country, constituted almost 48 percent of the country’s total currency flow.
Since mid-2016, the country is facing hyper-inflation, which forced citizens to carry a backpack full of cash for normal purchases.
Multiple media reports showed that the country will soon release six new notes and three coins, the largest of it will be worth 20,000 bolivars.
