Published by the government of Zimbabwe
21 December 2007
Harare — Banks should start dispensing the new higher value bearer cheques today as deliveries started from the Reserve Bank late yesterday.
Reserve Bank Governor Dr Gideon Gono on Wednesday announced the introduction of $250 000, $500 000 and $750 000 bearer cheques, to complement the existing set up.
The existing $200 000 bearer cheque will cease to be legal tender at midnight on December 31.
By 4pm, cash vans could be seen queueing at the Reserve Bank entrance to collect the new bearer cheques that are expected to end the cash shortage within the next few days.
In order to keep the changes confidential to the last minute, to prevent corrupt bank officials from passing on details to favoured customers, the Reserve Bank had to wait until yesterday to make final logistical arrangements.
It is understood that the $750 000 bearer cheque is likely to be destined for ATMs. These machines are designed to dispense a maximum of 40 notes and with the raising of the withdrawal limit to $50 million, it will require only two card insertions to withdraw that amount. Using smaller denominations will result in slow-moving queues.
The Reserve Bank also switched the design of the new $250 000 bearer cheque at the last minute. The original design was from the first family of bearer cheques phased out last year. The new design, finalised yesterday, belongs to the new family introduced on August 1, 2006. The Reserve Bank has its own printing press and design staff, which means such last-minute changes can be effected with the minimum of delay.
Some bank branches opened until 6pm yesterday anticipating delivery of the cheques, introduced to ease the six-week cash crunch.
Stanbic Bank managing director Ms Pindie Nyandoro said her staff had gone to collect the new notes.
"Our guys have gone to collect the money. This means that anytime from now or by end of day we will be having the notes.
"We have not yet seen RBZ and Zimra officials and nothing has been communicated to us yet," she said.
Deposits were still low despite the fact that the $200 000 bearer cheque will remain legal tender for just another 10 days.
Central bank authorities believed cash barons were holding onto the $200 000 cheque. Some retailers were limiting consumers to a maximum of $50 million worth of goods with the $200 000 bearer cheque.
Long queues were still noticeable in banking halls and at ATMs in Harare as cash-starved people tried to get cash for Christmas shopping.
A manager at Kingdom Bank at the corner of First Street and Nelson Mandela Avenue told customers in the banking hall at around 4pm that her branch was still waiting for its allocation from the central bank.
"We have been promised money today but we have not received anything yet. I'm appealing to you to be patient until the money comes," she said.
She said once the money came in, customers would be able to withdraw the new cheques although the branch was giving up to $50 million of the $5 000 and $10 000 bearer cheques.
The branch was by 7pm still open as tellers battled to clear the queues in the banking hall.
An official at a ZB Bank branch along First Street told customers to go home and return today when they expected to have received the new bearer cheques.
The Barclays Bank branch at the corner of First Street and Samora Machel Avenue was giving $2 million at the end of the day having exhausted stocks of smaller denominations.
"We have been giving $5 million since morning, but now we are giving $2 million so customers can have something for bus fare," said an official at the branch.
Meanwhile, the Acting Minister of Finance, Cde Patrick Chinamasa, has gazetted regulations meant to give effect to the introduction of higher denomination and phasing out of the $200 000 bearer cheque.
The regulations also extended the lifespan of those bearer cheques under $100 000 already in circulation, which were due to expire at the end of this month.
The expiry date of bearer cheques in circulation has now been extended to July 31 2008.
According to the regulations, the RBZ would not after December 31 2007 be required to make payment to holders of the $200 000 bearer cheque, which is being phased out although traders can still deposit them up to the close of business on January 2 next year.
The introduction of higher denomination bearer cheques is meant to mitigate the current cash shortages.
The current bearer cheques were introduced in August last year under Sunrise 1 when the central bank lopped off three zeros from the currency.
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