Rabat – Morocco’s central bank, Bank Al Maghrib (BAM), identified 9,575 counterfeit banknotes in 2019, worth MAD 1.5 million ($161,000).
The number of counterfeit banknotes increased by 6% compared to 2018, a press release from BAM announced on Monday, August 3.
More than two-thirds of the counterfeit banknotes (69%) were of a MAD 200 ($21) value—the highest-value banknote in Morocco. Nearly half the counterfeit banknotes (46%) imitated the design of banknotes issued in 2012.
Regarding the counterfeiting ratio, Bank Al Maghrib revealed that only 5.2 banknotes out of a million in Morocco are counterfeit. According to the central bank, the ratio is low compared to international figures.
The 2019 quality maintenance operations led to the recovery of 3.2 billion banknotes, marking a 5% increase compared to 2018. The operations, carried out by private sorting centers and BAM, allow the recycling of banknotes in poor quality.
The 2019 operations led to the processing of 1.7 billion banknotes recycled directly to banks and 474 million banknotes paid to BAM. The overall recycling rate stood at 79%.
Besides the quality maintenance operations, Bank Al Maghrib carried out 309 unannounced inspections to ensure compliance with all the regulations regarding banknotes. Sixty inspections targeted private sorting centers, while 249 took place in bank branches across Morocco.
According to the central bank, the inspections identified a number of improvements to the process of sorting and recycling bank notes. They also detected some negligence that could facilitate the usage of counterfeit banknotes.
According to Morocco’s penal code, counterfeiting money can lead to life imprisonment.
