No shortage of Rp 1,000 banknotes: BI

JAKARTA (JP): The central bank has doubled the December stock of Rp 1,000 banknotes, including the newly issued series, in anticipation of increased demand ahead of the holidays, a Bank Indonesia official said on Thursday.

Halim Alamsyah, the head of the office of the governor of Bank Indonesia, said in a statement made available to The Jakarta Post the bank's reserves would be adequate to meet the public demand through January 2001.

"The Rp 1,000 banknotes include the new series, which bears the portrait of national hero Captain Pattimura and was issued on Nov. 29, the 1992-serial Rp 1,000 banknotes and the Rp 1,000 coins issued in 1993," he said.

In most Indonesian villages and cities, including Jakarta, many Muslim families prepare coins and small banknotes for Idul Fitri. The money is given to any children who visit their homes.

In the past few days, several banks and money traders in the capital have reported shortages of Rp 1,000 banknotes, particularly the new Pattimura series.

According to the customer service officers of several banks, Bank Indonesia has only provided a limited amount of Rp 1,000 banknotes.

"We can only give five Rp 1,000 bills to each customer. We cannot provide more than that because we do not have an adequate stock," Irma, a customer service officer at a Lippo Bank branch in Central Jakarta, said on Wednesday.

She said the shortage first appeared last week and banks had yet to receive a reliable explanation as to the cause of the shortage or when it would be addressed.

"We cannot tell when the central bank can provide us a sufficient amount of the banknotes, especially ahead of Idul Fitri," she said.

A customer service officer at a Bank Central Asia branch in Central Jakarta voiced the same sentiments.

"I'm so sorry, we do not have an adequate stock of either the new or old series of Rp 1,000 banknotes."

Halim firmly denied on Wednesday rumors the new Rp 1,000 banknotes had been withdrawn from the market at the order of Bank Indonesia Governor Sjahril Sabirin, who was recently released from the detention center at the Attorney General's Office.

"No, it's not true. The new money was meant to anticipate the huge demand at the end of the year," he told the Post.

"There are also no lines of people at the central bank waiting to get the new Rp 1,000 banknotes, since we do not serve individuals, only banks," he said.

In the statement on Thursday, Halim said individuals who wished to get Rp 1,000 banknotes directly from the central bank could visit its branch office in Kota, West Jakarta, every Monday, Wednesday and Thursday from 7:30 a.m. to noon.

But in order to properly manage the stock and make suitable arrangements, "the people should first register their names and get a number the day before at the bank from 3 p.m. onward," he said. (bsr/rei/dja)