If counterfeit banknotes continue to exist, the risk of having one is very low, explains the European Central Bank.
When withdrawing money or recovering your change from a merchant, what is the risk of being given a counterfeit note? Very low, assures the European Central Bank (ECB), which in a note on the subject published this Monday, January 30, 2023 mentions 13 counterfeit banknotes detected per million genuine denominations in circulation.
The ECB explains that even if this proportion is exceptionally low, the number of counterfeit banknotes is up by 8.4% compared to 2021, the year in which the proportion of counterfeit banknotes fell to its lowest level since the introduction of the euro.
376,000 counterfeit banknotes withdrawn in 2022
Not surprisingly, the 20 and 50 euro banknotes remained the most counterfeited, compared to the largest banknotes which are often subject to more extensive checks. The 20 euro and 50 euro banknotes together represent just under two-thirds of the total, further notes the ECB.
Whereas 376,000 counterfeit banknotes were taken out of circulation in 2022the vast majority (96.6%) of counterfeit banknotes were seized in euro area countries, compared to 2.7% in non-euro area Member States of the European Union and 0.7% in other regions of the world.
True or false note: how to check?
If you have any doubts, how can you check that the note in your possession has not been counterfeit? According to the ECB, as counterfeits contain no security features, or only very bad imitations, most of them are easy to detect.
However, it is still possible to simply verify whether or not a ticket is counterfeit by touchingin the watching well or in tilting it. The European Central Bank also publishes on its website tips for recognizing a counterfeit note. Finally, the ECB recalls in its communication that the willful use of a counterfeit note is a prosecutable offence.
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