RBI Report Fake Currency: The impact of demonetisation, which was launched in 2016 to eliminate fake currency from the market, is now fading. In its recent report, the Reserve Bank has given important clues. In it, he explained that the amount of fake notes in circulation in the market has once again started increasing rapidly. In particular, there is a significant increase in the number of fake notes of 500 rupees. During the financial year 2025-26, the number of counterfeit Rs 500 notes has increased by 20 per cent while the circulation of fake Rs 20 notes has also increased.
LPG Rules: Major changes in LPG rules from June 1, your cylinder too may be cancelled…
Information from Reserve Bank
According to the information provided by the Reserve Bank, there has been an increase of more than 20 percent in the detection of fake notes of Rs 500 in the last financial year. Overall, the number of counterfeit notes detected in the banking system increased by 5.7 percent to 2,29,746 in 2025-26; Which was 2,17,396 last year. Out of these, fake Rs 500 notes accounted for the most and their number increased to 1,41,907.
Fake ₹20 notes also on the rise
According to the report, there was a significant increase in the number of fake ₹20 notes, while counterfeit notes of ₹100, ₹50 and ₹200 denominations saw a decline. With the withdrawal of ₹2,000 notes from circulation, the incidence of counterfeit notes of this denomination has also reduced significantly. According to RBI data, during the year 2025-26, the number of current notes in circulation will increase by 10.5% and their value by 11.9%. This is indicative of strong demand for cash in the economy. The process of demonetisation of ₹2,000 notes, which was initiated in May 2023, continued throughout the previous financial year. By March 2026, a total of 98.45% of notes of this value had returned to the banking system.
An increase in the circulation of coins
The Reserve Bank has also informed that an increase has been recorded in the circulation of coins. During the financial year 2025-26, the total number of coins increased by 4.5 percent, while their value increased by 11.4 percent. One, two and five rupee coins accounted for about 80 percent of the total number of coins. In the year 2025-26, the demand for bank note printing was less than the previous year; As a result, printing expenditure declined to ₹ 4,875 crore from ₹ 6,379 crore in the previous year. Although the demand for printing of high denomination banknotes has decreased, the printing of Rs 10 notes has seen an increase.
The flow of cash into currency increased further
Releasing its data, the Reserve Bank informed that the circulation of Rs 500 notes has increased by 11.2 per cent during the financial year 2025-26, maintaining its position as the currency with the largest share in the monetary system. By the end of March 2026, the number of Rs 500 notes in circulation reached 7,05,482; Which was 6,34,458 last year. In terms of value, the total circulation of these notes reached Rs 35.27 lakh crore, as against Rs 31.72 lakh crore in the previous financial year. The share of Rs 500 notes was 41.2 percent of the total number of notes in circulation. Which is the highest among all denomination notes. In terms of value, these notes accounted for more than 86 percent.
Oh wow! …then cylinder will be cheaper! If the blockade in Hormuz is lifted, will India’s tension end?
Comments are closed.