NBU cautions against using banknotes with holes and other damage

Now one may come across banknotes in cash circulation, which were deliberately damaged by employees of some banks on the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine. They were likely stolen from invaded bank branches by occupiers or marauders in order to further circulate them and destabilize the situation in the field of finance. The National Bank of Ukraine cautions against accepting them during cash payments, as they ceased to be a means of payment after having been damaged.

• How can the banknotes be damaged?

Mechanical damage

• Drilling holes in banknotes damaging one or two serial numbers with a drill bit of 10 mm in diameter or more. The banknote must have one or two holes.
• Cutting off at least 50% of the total banknote area and destroying it
• Cutting in half or in thirds

Damage with a special liquid solution

• A special solution used in specialized devices for storing currency values / other dyeing substances (solutions) with at least 50% of the total banknote area dyed.

What to do if you are given a damaged banknote during payment?

• To decline and ask for a different one
• To notify the National Bank of Ukraine of the discovered banknote.

Please note, that the bank conducts no transactions with damaged cash as well as removes them in a specified way without refunding the cost.