Do not write, seal or staple banknotes: Bangladesh Bank

The Bangladesh Bank has instructed not to write anything or use any seal or stamp on any new and non-issue (reusable) banknotes, and not to staple any currency note except Tk1,000 notes so that the notes are not obsolete within a short time and customers do not suffer.

There is a provision to affix a label with the name of the branch of the bank concerned, seal and signature of the note counter after confirming the number of notes and packing the packets. However, recently it has been seen that notes are being directly sealed, signed and stapled in violation of the directive.

As a result, the notes become obsolete in a short time and the customers suffer. Above all, state money is wasted, which is not at all coveted and it hinders the implementation of the central bank's clean note policy, read the circular issued by the central bank on Tuesday, instructing the chief executives of commercial banks in this regard.

Besides, the central bank has received several other irregularities in the deposits of scheduled banks such as having less than the number of notes mentioned in the packet, having low denomination notes in the packet of high denomination ones, keeping the parts of two notes of different denominations as well as counterfeit notes in the packets.

Earlier, in a circular issued on 9 September 2019, the central bank said that the names, seals and notes of the bank's branch counters and representatives must provide their signatures and dates in the printed flyleaf of the bank instead of writing on the money.

According to that circular, packets of notes other than Tk1,000 should be wrapped with 25-30 mm wide polymer tape or polymer thick paper tape. However, banks can follow any advanced technology of any country in the world in the interest of the security of their notes if they wish.