The Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe has announced that it will soon issue new bank notes in denominations of Z$10 trillion, Z$20 trillion, Z$50 trillion and Z$100 100 trillion in hopes of easing persistent shortages of cash.
A central bank source told VOA that the Reserve Bank is issuing the mega-notes to reduce printing costs and meet demand, noting that senior business managers are earning salaries in the quadrillions of Zimbabwe dollars. The official said the notes could be out next week.
Economist Prosper Chitambara told reporter Blessing Zulu of VOA's Studio 7 for Zimbabwe that despite their magnitude, the new currency denominations are just a stop-gap measure that will have limited impact as the economy spirals downward.
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