The Ministry of Finance said on Monday that the government has neither taken any decision nor is considering demonetisation of Rs 5,000 currency note. The official spokesman for the Finance Ministry said in a statement that there is no justification for discontinuation of Rs 5,000 currency note and reports and rumours circulating in this regard are totally baseless.
An official said the speculations about demonetisation of Rs 5,000 currency note have been going on for quite some time and both the common man and business community are disturbed over such reports. He said that a need was felt to issue a categorical clarification in this regard.
The position that current denomination of highest value notes in Pakistan, ie Rs 5,000 is significantly smaller as compared with those of major currencies such as $100 note, Euro 200 and Pound Sterling 50. During 2015-16, only 17 per cent of the notes printed were of Rs 5,000 denomination.
Given the continuing use of cash in transactions, the government believes that discontinuation of Rs 5,000 note would adversely affect the efficiency of exchange in the business and would be a source of major discomfort and anxiety for the people. The government said it is pursuing a National Financial Inclusion Strategy in association with the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) whereby digital transactions and branchless banking are being brought to the doorstep of people that would significantly reduce the dependence on currency.
This is the way to move forward for promoting documentation in the economy rather than by cancelling any existing denomination. The government hopes people would not lend their ears to rumours and trust the authentic word of their elected government, the statement said.