New Delhi – Reserve Bank Governor Shaktikanta Das announced on Friday that Rs 2,000 denomination notes are making a comeback, with only Rs 10,000 crore worth of such notes still in circulation. However, Das expressed confidence that these notes will also be returned or deposited back into the banking system.
According to Das, “Rs 2,000 notes are coming back and only Rs 10,000 crore is left in the system. The expectation is that the amount will also come back.” He made this statement on the sidelines of an event held in New Delhi.
Earlier this month, Das had revealed that 87 percent of the Rs 2,000 denomination notes that were being phased out had been returned as deposits into banks, while the remaining amount had been exchanged across counters.
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) had surprised the financial world on May 19 announcing its plan to phase out the Rs 2,000 note, which was introduced in 2016 as part of a rapid remonetisation effort. This decision followed Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s announcement to invalidate the Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes, which accounted for over 88 percent of the currency in circulation.
Initially, the public and entities holding Rs 2,000 notes were given until September 30 to either exchange or deposit them in bank accounts. However, the deadline was later extended to October 7.
On October 7, both deposit and exchange services for Rs 2,000 notes at bank branches were discontinued. From October 8 onwards, individuals were given the option to either exchange the currency or have the equivalent amount credited to their bank accounts at 19 RBI locations. The exchange limit for Rs 2,000 notes at the RBI offices is set at Rs 20,000 at a time, but there is no limit on the total amount that can be credited into bank accounts.
With the assurance from Shaktikanta Das that the remaining Rs 2,000 notes will be returned, it is expected that the circulation of these notes will be back to normal in the near future.