$5, $10, $20 Notes Still Legal Tender - Mangudya
Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) governor John Mangudya has advised that all banknotes that have been issued by the central bank remain legal tender, following the rejection of smaller denomination notes by some businesses.
Reports indicate that most transport operators and shops in Bulawayo are now rejecting the ZW$20 notes, while ZW$5 and ZW$10 have since been rejected by the transacting public.
Responding to questions from Sunday News Business, Mangudya said all the bank notes remain legal tender in the country. He said:
While we are not privy to that predicament raised, it is important to advise that all the bank notes that we issued remain legal tender which can be deposited at banks and banks can bank the same at the RBZ under the normal banking process.
Confederation of Zimbabwe Retailers (CZR) president Denford Mutashu urged businesses to accept the $20 banknotes to avoid inconveniencing the public. Mutashu said;
We encourage businesses to accept all notes including the ZW$20 notes and not inconvenience the transacting public.
Rejection of particular denominations is usually synonymous with high inflation as currency value erodes, unfortunately, it is only in our environment that economic agencies decide to reject notes.
In Malawi, Zambia, South Africa and other jurisdictions, even the smallest of the denominations like coins are accepted at the point of transacting.
