"Burned and Moist"… Disposal of 'Damaged Currency' Equivalent to 24 Times the Height of Baekdusan

Bank of Korea 'Damaged Currency Disposal and Exchange Volume in 2019'

Disposal of 4.354 trillion KRW worth

[Asia Economy Reporter Shim Nayoung] 'Mr. Choi from Gyeongbuk exchanged 236 million KRW worth of banknotes damaged by a house fire at the Bank of Korea.' 'Mr. Son from Chungnam exchanged 9 million KRW worth of banknotes damaged by moisture after storing them in a plastic bag in the refrigerator.' 'Mr. Shin from Gyeonggi exchanged 18 million KRW worth of damaged coins collected from temple ponds over about 10 times.'

These are examples of damaged currency exchanges introduced by the Bank of Korea. According to the Bank of Korea on the 19th, last year the Bank of Korea disposed of the largest volume of currency in 10 years. The Bank of Korea announced through the 'Damaged Currency Disposal and Exchange Volume in 2019' data that it disposed of 640 million damaged currency notes (4.354 trillion KRW) last year.

This is the highest level since the 50,000 KRW note was issued in 2009. Damaged currency refers to banknotes and coins that have been returned through financial institutions and other channels to the Bank of Korea and then destroyed by automatic sorting machines or shredders. The unit is standardized as 'notes.'

Among these, 610 million banknotes (4.3516 trillion KRW) were disposed of. By denomination, the 10,000 KRW note (330 million notes) accounted for the largest share (53.5% of disposed banknotes). This was followed by the 1,000 KRW note (230 million notes, 37.8%), 5,000 KRW note (40 million notes, 6.7%), and 50,000 KRW note (10 million notes, 2.0%). The disposed volume is equivalent to 114 five-ton trucks. If stacked individually, the total height would be 65.2 km (117 times the height of Lotte World Tower, 24 times Baekdusan, and 7 times Mount Everest).

Coins disposed of amounted to 25.9 million (2.4 billion KRW). The 10 KRW coin (11.1 million coins) accounted for the largest share (42.9% of disposed coins), followed by the 100 KRW coin (9.9 million coins, 38.2%), 50 KRW coin (2.6 million coins, 10.1%), and 500 KRW coin (2.3 million coins, 8.8%).

The main causes of damage were improper storage such as being pressed under flooring or moisture causing decay (60,600 coins, 1.07 billion KRW), fire damage (51,700 coins, 1.105 billion KRW), and careless handling such as washing or shredding (21,800 coins, 390 million KRW).

For damaged banknotes, if part or all of the banknote is damaged by fire or other causes making it unusable, and if the remaining area is 3/4 or more, the full face value is exchanged for new notes; if the remaining area is between 2/5 and less than 3/4, half the face value is exchanged for new notes. Damaged or otherwise unsuitable coins are exchanged at face value. However, coins that are difficult to recognize in shape or hard to verify authenticity cannot be exchanged.