The Central Bank of Kenya, in a Wednesday morning statement, revealed that they had made significant changes to the Kenyan currency notes. CBK said the changes will affect Sh50, Sh100, Sh200, Sh500, and Sh1,000 notes.
Dr Kamau Thugge, the current CBK governor who took over from Patrick Njoroge who retired from CBK governor role in mid-June last year, said in a post-monetary policy meeting that the institution had turned to a German firm for printing new notes to replace old ones and also avert possible stockouts, but failed to disclose the name of the firm or the cost of printing the new notes.
The British Printer’s local subsidiary, De la Rue, in which the government has a 40% ownership, has been printing notes for Kenya but had to close shop after the CBK told it no more orders would be coming for at least 12 months.
The banknotes will feature four key changes: the signature of the Governor of the Central Bank of Kenya, Dr. Kamau Thugge; the signature of the Principal Secretary of the National Treasury, Dr. Chris Kiptoo; the year of print, 2024; and new security threads with color-changing effects specific to each denomination.
“All banknotes currently in circulation remain legal tender and will circulate alongside the released banknotes. Release of the banknotes will commence with Sh1,000, while other denominations will progressively follow in the coming months,” said CBK.
The Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) says, that when you run your fingers over the note, you will notice that the words “Kenya,” the “1,000” value, and the edge are well-defined and textured.
In addition, holding the currency note up to the light will reveal a watermark of a lion’s head, along with the text “CBK” and the value of the banknote. The security thread will appear as a continuous line and will change color when tilted.
Under Ultra-Violet light, the golden band on the note will display the value of the banknote. These updates are by Section 22 of the Central Bank of Kenya Act. This section mandates that the denominations, inscriptions, forms, material, and other characteristics of the notes and coins issued by the Bank are determined by the Bank in consultation with the Minister, and are to be notified in the Gazette and other public information media to ensure public awareness.
By the end of December 2023, CBK data revealed that the total value of currency notes in the country was Sh340.59 billion. Sh1,000 notes accounted for Sh290.97 billion of this total. The Sh500-denominated notes were valued at Sh16.11 billion, while the Sh200 notes had a combined worth of Sh11.58 billion. Both the Sh1000 and Sh50 denominations each had a total value of Sh6.04 billion..
