Suva, Fiji, May 20, 2016
The Governor of the Reserve Bank of Fiji, Barry Whiteside has urged people to be extra cautious when receiving Fiji currency notes in light of the recent discoveries of counterfeit notes.
He issued the following statement today:
In general, we have found the counterfeits passed in Fiji are usually of poor quality and can be spotted quite easily if people take the time for a quick examination. Our appeal to the public is to at least check the main security features such as the watermark (i-taukei man), security thread and other foil features on paper notes when receiving them. These basic security features are easily identifiable within a few seconds for those well versed in the notes’ security features and who know what to look for. For businesses that have ultra violet light sources, the notes will also emit special fluorescent features when placed against such light sources. This is a powerful recognition tool in low light conditions.
These security features will be missing on counterfeit notes. For cashiers who handle notes on a daily basis, ‘feel’ of the note also becomes an important ally as the quality of the counterfeit paper is usually very different from that of real notes.
But often, as with supermarket checkout cashiers, roadside sellers, nightclub operators and other cash recipients who go through busy periods, they unfortunately do not make the necessary checks until later when they have a bit of time and are counting up the day or night’s takings. It is at these times that they spot the counterfeits, which does indicate they know what to look for but just missed it the first time around.
Any counterfeit note found should be immediately forwarded to the police for investigation. The act of counterfeiting or being in possession of counterfeit notes is a serious offence and anyone caught will be prosecuted.
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