Windhoek
Despite a substantial increase in the number of counterfeit banknotes detected by the Bank of Namibia (BoN) in 2015, the quality of counterfeiting leaves much to be desired, as it does not even come close to incorporating or duplicating the myriad of security features embedded on the notes.
According to the BoN’s latest annual report the total number of counterfeit Namibia Dollar banknotes detected in 2015 increased to 465 pieces, compared to 343 pieces recorded in 2014.
“I have not seen any counterfeits that will give the BoN sleepless nights. The detected counterfeit notes do not even come close to the authentic Namibian banknotes. The counterfeiting is of very bad quality,” said BoN Deputy Governor Ebson Uanguta.
The BoN 2015 annual report further states that counterfeiters mostly target the two high-value denominations, namely the N$100 and N$200 banknotes, which respectively accounted for 36.3 percent and 54.2 percent of total counterfeits detected last year.
As at December 31, 2015, the ratio of counterfeits per million in respect of all banknote denominations stood at 9 pieces, which was well below the international benchmark of 70 banknotes per million.
“It is also worth noting that the nine pieces were below the bank’s own threshold of 10 pieces per one million banknotes,” stated the Annual Report.
During November and December 2015 police apprehended two counterfeit syndicates in the Erongo and Omusato regions that resulted in the confiscation of 241 counterfeit N$200 notes.
The fake notes were found in the suspects’ possession and hence had not gone into circulation. The BoN is adamant that due to the early apprehension of the syndicates no financial losses were incurred by any individual or institution.
In a related matter, the central bank offered counterfeit training to 88 stakeholders, including law enforcement agencies and retail sectors in 2015. The BoN consistently embarks on various intervention measures to curb counterfeiting.