Kenyans rush to swap Sh1,000 banknotes as cash ban looms

A currency dealer counts old edition Sh1,000 notes at a money exchange bureau on September 19, 2018 in Nairobi. PHOTO | SIMON MAINA | AFP

Last week a man walked into a Nairobi car yard and paid for a luxury Mercedes with a mountain of Sh1,000 banknotes, desperate to offload cash that within days would be worthless.

With a deadline looming before the Central Bank of Kenya bans all old edition Sh1,000 notes, big fish with their fortunes stashed in cash are under pressure to find ways to jettison their money.

A new print of the Sh1,000 banknote, the largest denomination, was rolled out in June, with Kenyans given to September 30 to exchange their old bills at the bank or be stuck with bundles of useless cash.

DIRTY MONEY

The operation is aimed at flushing out dirty money being hoarded by tax evaders, crooked businessmen and criminal groups.

Large deposits of the old notes, embossed with the image of Kenya's founding father Jomo Kenyatta, raise alarm bells at banks and require paperwork to prove their origin.

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