The Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) has announced the release of new banknotes for all five denominations of the Kenyan currency.
This development follows the retirement of the former CBK governor, Patrick Njoroge, who served in that crucial position from 2015 to 2023.
In a statement by CBK, the new Kenyan currency banknotes will bear the signature of the current governor, Dr. Kamau Thugge, and the signature of Dr. Chris Kiptoo, PS, National Treasury. In addition, the newly designed banknotes contain the year of print, 2024, and new security threads with color-changing effects specific to each denomination.
“The changes affect the fifty shillings (KES 50), one hundred shillings (KES 100), two hundred shillings (KES 200), five hundred shillings (KES 500), and one thousand shillings (KES 1,000) currency banknotes,” CBK noted.
The rest of the features will remain the same as those of the notes issued in 2019.
“All banknotes currently in circulation remain legal tender and will circulate alongside the released banknotes,” the statement further noted.
The release of the new currency banknotes will start with KES 1,000, while the release of the remaining four denominations will follow in the coming months.
CBK is mandated to issue currency and effect changes under the Section 22 (2) of the Central Bank of Kenya Act as well as the Article 231 (2) of the Constitution of Kenya
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