15/12/2016

Venezuelans on the removal of the 100-bolivar note: 'thoughtless, dangerous' | World news | The Guardian

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Venezuelans on the removal of the 100-bolivar

note: 'thoughtless, dangerous'
Venezuelans say the governments move to replace the note has come too late to reverse the countrys
economic woes
Carmen Fishwick and Guardian readers
Thursday 15 December 2016 13.16GMT

You need a minimum of 50 100-bolivar notes to buy a McDonalds burger in central Caracas,
and thats without a soft drink and fries on the side. With the smallest denomination being
pulled from circulation and replaced with larger notes on Thursday, wallets might lighten. But
Venezuelans who responded to a Guardian callout say the move will disrupt an already chaotic
situation, making the lives of the most vulnerable even worse.
Right now, the 100-bolivar note represents almost half of all the notes we have. Because
ination is so severe, the rst four notes 2, 5, 10, 20 are useless. Any wallet is too small to
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Venezuelans on the removal of the 100-bolivar note: 'thoughtless, dangerous' | World news | The Guardian

carry this amount of money, says 25-year-old Gabriel, a student from Caracas.
But the bank said they have not received [the new notes] ... we have almost no cash in our
hands. After people changed the notes, they went to ATMs ... they received new 100 notes and
had to make the line again to deposit those! This shows a little bit how illogical this situation
is, he says.
Venezuelans were given just 72 hours as of Tuesday to deposit 100-bolivar notes before they
become ocially worthless. Six new notes and three new coins, the largest worth 20,000
bolivars (3.93), are to be released.
Many countries in the world have changed their currencies but aorded enough time to
exchange the old notes with new ones, says Carlos, 58, from Caracas, who says the move is
too hasty. Think of Europe and the euro. And when Chvez changed the Venezuelan bolivar to
Strong bolivars both currencies could be used for several years.
At a shopping centre I saw two banks with huge lines of people waiting to deposit the note. At
supermarkets people were paying with notes instead of with debit and credit cards as they
normally do, he says.

People stand in line outside a state-owned Bank of Venezuela to

deposit their 100-bolivar notes. Photograph: Fernando Llano/AP

The countrys currency exchange system is extremely complicated, and an enormous black
market largely responsible for the countrys ination, currently running at an estimated 500%
has emerged.
The interior minister, Nestor Reverol, said criminals were hoarding 100-bolivar bills outside
the country as part of a nancial attack. By pulling the 100-bolivar note, the government hopes
to crackdown on criminal gangs, specically on the Colombian border.
Luis, 18, from Upata, a city in the north-east of the country, agrees with government action
against those who prot from black market currency trading. But he is uncertain what eect it
will have on his life.
The notes are being used in Colombia by gangsters who discolour the notes in order to print or
create fake dollar bills, among other uses. It is a good idea to pull the note from circulation but
the problem is that it is insane to give such a short period ... and just during this period of the
year when everybody is needing to buy and have cash to cover the expenses, he says.
But Loretta, who lives in Caracas, disagrees: If the government want to ght against the
maas they should use the police and the intelligence services, not mess up the economy even
more. It is madness! They havent released the new bills.
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Venezuelans on the removal of the 100-bolivar note: 'thoughtless, dangerous' | World news | The Guardian

Many people dont have bank accounts, many small business dont have a way to pay with
cards. And pensioners usually prefer to use cash because it is easier for them.
The government hopes the move will improve the availability of food and medicine by
stemming the sale of state-subsidised Venezuelan goods, which are then sold on the black
market for huge prots.
Those people who have been taking advantage of the situation, like gangsters, who resell food
at high prices, who trac gas [which is heavily state-subsidised] across the borders are the
ones who have derived the maximum benet from this situation. They have become rich, or
have increased their wealth on a broad scale, by abusing the necessities of the people.
I have friends who have lost lots of pounds, and they look so skinny and terrible ... because
some of them do not have the possibility of having the three meals a day, because they cannot
nd a job, or they do not earn enough to buy food at least for a week, Reverol says.
President Nicols Maduro, who has come under increasing criticism for his handling of the
economic crisis, says an economic war is being waged on the country by rightwing opponents.
But critics say the governments strict currency controls and price-xing of certain goods are to
blame.
Clarissa, a graphic designer who lives in the capital, says it is a hasty decision that wont
improve anything, but has grown used to the chaotic situation.
Credit and debit cards services collapsed a few weeks ago and the people who spent hours at
banks trying to withdraw money to have just in case, are now forced to return to their banks to
deposit it all.
This kind of move requires a lot of thought and logistics. Several questions are left
unanswered. Nobody, not even taxi drivers, are taking these bills now. When are the new bills
coming out? Its nonsense, she says.
For many, it feels as though the move has come too late. Carlos, 38, an accountant from
Barquisimeto in Lara state, says the criminals have already prospered, leaving the economy
beyond repair.
Now the government wants to appear as a saviour, concealing the fact that it let thousands of
crooks enrich themselves.
The damage is done and the consequences, as always, are for the poor to cope with. If you are
a Venezuelan with access to US dollars, you could take $10 and buy $45, he says. This
economy is a heaven for the rich and a lot like Dantes Inferno for the rest of us who remain
living in concentric circles of suering.
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