Zimbabwe to release $7 million more in $2 bond notes as they prove a hit

Zimbabwe’s central bank says it will release $7 million worth of $2 dollar bond notes into circulation this week.

The notes, which are meant to ease a banknote shortage in the southern African nation, trade at par with the US dollar.

Last week the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) released the first batch of the bond notes worth $10 million into circulation after months of speculation but long queues have remained a fixture at banks around the country.

The central bank said it will release a total of $75 million worth of bond notes by the end of this year, out of a total of $200 million under an Afreximbank facility.

“In line with the strategy to release the Bond Notes on a measured or drip feed basis, the Bank would like to advise the public that it is releasing the second batch of $2 Bond Notes amounting to $7 million this week,” the RBZ said in a statement today.

“This brings the total amount of Bond Notes disbursed to $17 million against a value of $70 million payable to exporters of goods and services under the Export Incentive Scheme.”

The Bank added that it would release the $5 denominations into the market in ‘due course.’

The bond notes have gained acceptance despite being criticized by a sceptical public who viewed their introduction as a scheme to return the much loathed Zimbabwean dollar which was abandoned in 2009 after hyperinflation had rendered it worthless.- The Source

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