Central Bank of Chile launches 'Know your money' campaign with Carabineros to help the public verify banknotes and coins

The Central Bank of Chile has launched the “Conoce tu dinero” (“Know your money”) campaign with Carabineros de Chile, taking information sessions to major markets in Santiago and Valparaíso to encourage consumers and merchants to check banknotes and coins as cash circulation rises ahead of the national holidays. The central bank estimates that demand for cash during the Fiestas Patrias period can rise by up to 50% versus an average month due to seasonal factors such as bonuses, higher food and beverage purchases, tourism mobility and increased spending in small retailers. It reiterated verification techniques for banknotes using the “MIT” method (Look, Tilt and Touch) and for coins using “Look, Touch and Compare”, and set out how to handle suspected counterfeits: do not re-spend them, and instead hand them in voluntarily to a bank, the Central Bank’s public service desk, or to Carabineros/PDI with a complaint. Banks will retain suspicious cash and send it to the central bank for authentication, reimbursing the amount only if it is genuine, while suspicious banknotes not handed in voluntarily may be stamped “Presuntamente Falso” as a deterrent.