The Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) has introduced new banknotes following the retirement of former Governor Patrick Njoroge, with all future notes featuring the signatures of current Governor Kamau Thugge and Treasury Principal Secretary Dr. Chris Kiptoo.
The redesign, detailed in a public notice issued on August 6, 2024, affects all denominations (Sh50, Sh100, Sh200, Sh500 and Sh1,000) and includes updates such as the 2024 print year and enhanced security features, including color-changing security threads.
CBK has confirmed that the release of all denominations is underway, with the newly designed notes maintaining the same basic features as those issued in 2019.
“We would like to remind the public that all other banknotes currently in circulation remain legal tender and will continue to be in use alongside the newly released banknotes,” CBK added.
The Apex Bank, confirmed that the currency in circulation, remains legal tender hence no need for alarm or exchange and Kenyans have nothing to worry about regarding the changes.
CBK entered into a multi-billion-shilling contract with Giesecke + Devrient Currency Technologies for printing banknotes for a five-year period.
Central Bank Of Kenya Governor Kamau Thugge, appearing before the National Assembly Finance and National Planning Committee, said the government resorted to the measure following the exit of De La Rue.
Mr Thugge revealed that under the new contract, the foreign firm was to print and replenish 460 million pieces of Sh1000 notes and 170 million pieces of Sh500 notes. For the Sh200 notes, it is expected to avail 260 million pieces and a further 690 million pieces for the Sh100 notes. It is also expected to deliver 460 million pieces of Sh50 bank notes during the contractual period.
The committee led by Molo MP Kimani Kuria heard that the firm had already delivered on replenishing a section of the Sh1000 notes with more to be introduced in a few months.
“Following the exit of De La Rue, the country was at risk of stockout of banknotes, with grave economic and national security implications… we knew the country needed this stock up process and that’s why we went through all legal processes in the tendering process,” submitted Thugge.
“I would also want to clarify that the firm is not printing new currency but replenishing the existing ones that are old and worn out,” he added.
The company had been single-sourced by the Central Bank Of Kenya, as opposed to going through an open tender system.
Elsewhere, The Central Bank of Kenya wants to develop a new feature, a system that will allow instant payments, the biggest advance in the East African country’s money transfer network.
The Fast Payment System (FPS), will allow instant transactions across all financial institutions based in the country, including Commercial banks and payment service providers (PSPs).
FPS will allow Kenyans to pay bills, send money, receive money and conduct other transactions regardless of their bank.
It is a project that seeks to fix the interoperability issue that has made it a pain for payment systems to speak to each other.
“(FPS) will integrate certain aspects of payment services that are offered by financial institutions. FPS will enable customers to send and receive money instantly from anyone, anytime, anywhere, regardless of the type of institution a customer belongs to,” the CBK said in a statement.
The Central Bank However, did not specify When the New Feature will be launched.
Once implemented, FPS will make it easier for Kenyans to access financial services and stimulate economic activity through faster payments.
CBK Adopts new Platform for Bulk Payments.
The Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) has instructed banks to notify their customers about the migration of the Kenya Electronic Payment and Settlement System (KEPSS) to a new platform.
The regulator also announced that KEPSS has been upgraded to the Global Messaging Standard (ISO20022 Standard).
According to CBK, the new system is the latest international open standard for financial messaging that is being adopted globally.
The regulator disclosed that the migration of KEPSS to ISO20022 brings significant benefits, including faster settlement of payments and prevention of illicit transactions.