Counterfeit Bills Detected Fall Below 100 for the First Time... Down 33.3% Last Year

Attempts to Use Fake Money Purchased Online Are Increasing

The total number of counterfeit bills discovered in South Korea last year was 98, marking the first time the annual figure has fallen below 100.

According to the "2025 Counterfeit Currency Detection Status" report released by the Bank of Korea on January 21, a total of 98 counterfeit bills were found last year, representing a 33.3% decrease from the previous year’s 147 cases.

The annual trend in counterfeit bill detection had remained above 1,000 cases until 2017, but has steadily declined to 197 in 2023 and 147 in 2024.

A Bank of Korea official stated, "This year, there were relatively more requests for examination of genuine bills with damaged anti-counterfeiting features," adding, "It appears that the decline in counterfeit bills is due to improved public ability to distinguish fake currency."

By denomination, the counterfeit bills discovered last year consisted of 35 5,000-won notes, 28 10,000-won notes, 24 50,000-won notes, and 11 1,000-won notes.

The high number of 5,000-won notes is attributed to the continued discovery of counterfeit bills with the serial number '77246,' produced by a mass counterfeiter arrested in 2013 (33 notes), although this figure is still a significant decrease from the previous year’s 74 cases.

Last year, a total of 33 new serial numbers (unique identifiers) were detected, with 20 for 50,000-won notes, 7 for 10,000-won notes, and 4 for 1,000-won notes. The Bank of Korea explained that new counterfeiting attempts are increasingly focused on higher denominations.

Meanwhile, the Bank of Korea held its first Counterfeit Prevention Working Committee meeting of the year the previous day, sharing recent cases of counterfeit currency detection and the status of ongoing work efforts.

During the meeting, it was noted that attempts to use easily accessible fake money-available online-as counterfeit bills are on the rise, prompting discussions on countermeasures.

Fake money typically refers to products sold for purposes such as commemorative events, savings challenges, or bank-themed play. While production size is restricted to distinguish them from genuine bills, most products on the market do not comply with these standards, increasing the risk of confusion with real currency.

A Bank of Korea official advised, "To prevent damage, it is important to carefully check each bill when receiving cash to ensure they are all genuine," adding, "We will continue to maintain close cooperation with relevant organizations to protect the public from harm."