The Bill Received in a Secondhand Transaction Was Counterfeit... Reporter Awarded Bank of Korea Governor's Commendation

48 Counterfeit Bills Detected in First-Half Currency Circulation
Public's Ability to Identify Counterfeits Improves
New Counterfeiting Attempts Focused on High-Denomination Bills

In March, a resident of Cheonan, South Chungcheong Province, identified as Mr. A, discovered that a 10,000-won bill received during a peer-to-peer secondhand transaction was counterfeit and reported it to the police. Mr. A played a decisive role in apprehending the suspects who attempted to flee, enabling the police to arrest the perpetrators at the scene. The Cheonan Seobuk Police Station of the South Chungcheong Provincial Police Agency responded to the report of counterfeit currency in a secondhand transaction and arrested two suspects in their twenties. During the investigation, the police additionally confirmed evidence that the suspects had personally produced 189 counterfeit 10,000-won bills.

The Bank of Korea announced on the 11th that on July 10, it awarded a commendation from the Governor of the Bank of Korea and a monetary reward to Mr. A, who played a significant role in apprehending the currency counterfeiter, as well as to the Cheonan Seobuk Police Station for their thorough investigation. The Bank of Korea presents awards for contributions to the apprehension of currency counterfeiters twice a year, in the first and second halves.

In the first half of this year, a total of 48 counterfeit bills were detected in the currency circulation process, the same number as in the same period last year. These cases refer to counterfeit bills discovered by the Bank of Korea during its handling of circulating currency, or reported to the Bank of Korea by financial institutions after being found in cash receipts or at teller counters.

The total face value of the counterfeit bills discovered amounted to 787,000 won. Eleven counterfeit 50,000-won bills were found, an increase from eight in the same period last year, resulting in a 102,000-won rise in the total amount compared to the previous year. In addition to the eleven 50,000-won bills, there were sixteen 10,000-won bills, fourteen 5,000-won bills, and seven 1,000-won bills. New counterfeiting attempts were concentrated on high-denomination bills.

Meanwhile, the proportion of counterfeit bills relative to the total number of banknotes in circulation in South Korea has continued to decline gradually after a significant decrease up to 2019. The number of counterfeit bills discovered per 10 million banknotes in circulation in South Korea is 0.7, which is significantly lower than the figures for the United Kingdom (1,977), the eurozone (1,866), Canada (757), and Japan (16.5). A Bank of Korea official explained, "This is due to the growing preference for non-cash payment methods in face-to-face transactions, as well as the improvement in the public's ability to identify counterfeit bills."