Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, December 27) — The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) on Saturday asked the public not to post photos of alleged misprinted banknotes on social media.
In a press release, it said doing so may “cast doubt” on the credibility of the country’s currency.
“Posting photos of alleged misprinted banknotes on social media causes confusion which may negatively affect commerce,” the central bank said.
Instead it is urging the public to surrender the bills to the BSP Head Office in Manila, the Security Plant Complex in Quezon City, or any other regional offices or branches.
Last Monday, a post showing faceless P100 bills withdrawn from a Bank of the Philippines Islands ATM went viral on social media.
The BSP in a press conference on Wednesday admitted they were a result of a printing error, which has since been resolved.
It said there are 33 misprinted P100 bills. However, it added, the incident was an “isolated case,” and is no cause for alarm.
READ: BSP admits printing error caused faceless P100 bills
The BSP said posting on social media has magnified the issue, and urged those who had gotten hold of misprinted bills to turn them over to the BSP.
But after the press conference, photos of P50 and P500 notes allegedly missing faces also surfaced online.
The BSP warned the public to be wary of people seeking to “illegally profit” from posting, producing or selling fake misprinted notes.
“The BSP assures the public that it is, and has, always been committed to safeguarding the authenticity and genuineness of our currency and to protecting the public interest,” it said.
It gave the following contact numbers for those looking to contact their offices:
BSP Main Office – (02) 7087701
BSP Currency Issue and Integrity Office – (02) 9884834
BSP Corporate Affairs Office – (02) 7087140
Security Plant Complex – (02) 9884800
Numbers and addresses of the BSP’s regional offices and branches are also available on the BSP website: http://www.bsp.gov.ph/contact/regional.asp
