Governor Paudel's First Decision: NPR 1,000 and 50 Notes to Be Printed

Newly appointed Governor of Nepal Rastra Bank, Dr. Bishnu Nath Paudel, has made his first official decision after assuming office — to initiate the printing process of NPR 1,000 and NPR 50 denomination banknotes.

Deputy Governor Bam Bahadur Mishra confirmed the decision, stating, “The first decision made by Governor Paudel includes the printing of NPR 1,000 and NPR 50 notes. As per the standard procedure, the design committee will first prepare the note designs. Once the designs are approved by the committee, they will be submitted to the NRB board for final approval before moving ahead with the printing process.”

The decision follows the regular note printing protocol. Typically, high-denomination notes like NPR 500 and NPR 1,000 have a lifespan of 4 to 5 years, while lower denominations generally last around 3 years.

Recently, Nepal Rastra Bank shortlisted six international companies for the upcoming currency printing tasks. These companies include:

• China Banknote Printing & Minting Corporation (China)

• De La Rue International (UK)

• Giesecke+Devrient Currency Technology (Germany)

• Joint Stock Company (Russia)

• Oberthur Fiduciaire SAS (France)

• Polish Securities Printing Works (Poland)

These pre-qualified firms will now be eligible to compete in every tender issued by NRB over the next two years for note printing. Each time new currency is required, NRB will announce a competitive bidding process, and the company offering the lowest bid will be awarded the contract.

Experts in the financial sector have welcomed Governor Paudel’s proactive move, emphasizing that timely planning for currency printing is vital for maintaining monetary supply and economic stability.