Central Bank to issue new currency notes

Ramani Kangaraarachchi

The Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CB) will release new currency notes in 2010 which would mark the 11th series of currency notes the Bank has issued so far, said Governor, Central Bank Ajith Nivard Cabraal presenting the “Road Map, Monetary and Financial Sector Policies for 2009 and beyond at the Central Bank Conference Hall on Friday.

He said that the new notes reflect two themes, firstly the development and prosperity on the obverse of the notes and dances of Sri Lanka on the reverse. Cabraal said that the currency notes reflect different aspects of social,economic, cultural, political and religious dimensions of the society, in addition to facilitating payments and settlements. The CB has so far issued 10 series of currency notes from 1951 to 1991 under different themes.

Cabraal said that the CB continued to reshape its exchange control function from being a controller of foreign exchange transactions to a facilitator of attracting inflows of foreign resources to fill the domestic resource gap and streamlining approvals of foreign investment outflows under the capital account of the balance of payments.

He said that the Exchange Control Department (ECD)introduced five measures to achieve its objectives.

They are opening the Treasury Bill Market for foreign investment, relaxing restrictions on Gem and Jewellery exporters to deal in foreign exchange, encouraging Commercial Banks to mobilise deposits from non residents, releasing of outstanding balances lying in Non Resident Blocked Accounts and raising the limits of foreign exchange outflows for emigrants and relaxing restrictions on borrowings by non financial companies.

The Governor said that 2008 was a challenging one for the whole world and it presented many extraordinary difficulties in terms of policy and operations.