In the first half of the year, more counterfeit banknotes were withdrawn from circulation than in years. But the counterfeits are usually recognizable at first glance.
According to the Bundesbank, more counterfeit banknotes were detected in German payment transactions in the first half of the year than in seven years. In the first six months of the year, there were 38,578 banknotes with a face value of 2.4 million euros. This was the highest half-year figure since 2017 (39,685 counterfeits) and 29 percent more than in the second half of 2023.
The amount of damage, however, only rose by just under 5 percent because criminals preferred to counterfeit smaller notes. With a share of 37 percent, “fake fifties” were the most frequently in circulation, ahead of counterfeit 20-euro notes (30 percent) and counterfeit 10-euro notes (15 percent). Even counterfeit 10-euro notes were significantly more common than in the previous six months, but only made up 7 percent of the number of banknotes.
Large flowers become rarer
The number of 200 and 500 euro counterfeits, however, has fallen significantly compared to the last six months, reports Bundesbank board member Burkhard Balz. Together, they now account for only a tenth of the counterfeits seized. The 500 euro banknote has not been reprinted since 2019, but is still legal tender. Balz says: “Overall, the number of counterfeit notes remains low: mathematically, there were nine counterfeit banknotes per 10,000 inhabitants.”
A popular trick used by criminals is the unnoticed exchange of real banknotes for counterfeit ones, as the Bundesbank reports. This was the experience of a potential buyer who wanted to buy a used car in cash. The supposed seller first checked the real money, but then unexpectedly called off the deal. Only when the buyer got home did he realize that his banknotes had been exchanged for counterfeits.
Double your cash?
A rather bizarre case appears to be one in a Telegram chat group in which a member asked whether and how one could double one’s money. After a short time, a supposed helper offered to help and gave the victim counterfeit notes with a face value of 16,400 euros in exchange for 8,200 euros in cash.
Counterfeit money will not be replaced
Counterfeit money will not be replaced. Anyone who accepts it will have to bear the loss themselves. The Bundesbank strongly warns against trying to pass the counterfeit notes on to someone else, because this is a criminal offense. Instead, the counterfeits should be handed in to the Bundesbank or the police.
Many of the counterfeits are easy to recognize. They have no security features and are also marked with notes such as “MovieMoney” or “PropCopy”. The Bundesbank and the police advise checking banknotes before accepting them using the “feel-see-tilt” principle.
Counterfeit coins twice as common
Counterfeit coins are circulating around twice as often as banknotes. The Bundesbank has registered an increase of 19 percent to almost 80,000 copies. 94 percent of the counterfeits are the largest coin, worth 2 euros.
The European Central Bank is already working on the next generation of euro notes, which were first issued in 2002. The people of Europe were allowed to have a say in the redesign of the notes: in surveys last year, citizens favored themes from European culture as well as rivers and birds as motifs.
Citizens can have a say in new motifs
However, it will be several years before people have the new banknotes in their hands. By the end of 2024, an advisory group will propose motifs for the selected themes. A design competition will then be held. Citizens will then be asked for their opinion again. The ECB is expected to make the decision on the final design and the timing of the production and issue of the new banknotes in 2026. Experience has shown that it will then take another two to three years before the new banknotes come into circulation.
Information materials from the Bundesbank on counterfeit money Police prevention offer from the ECB on future banknotes
Source: Stern
