The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) instructed banks to sanitize bank notes to kill the virus and prevent the spread of coronavirus disease 2019 or COVID-19.
BSP released operating guidelines through the Metro Manila Currency Operations Sub-Sector requiring all authorized agent banks to sanitize banknotes prior to depositing to the central bank “for the protection of all cash handlers.”
“Banknotes for deposits must be sanitized through the use of shrink-wrapping machines with heat levels set to the highest degree Celsius temperature (e.g., 100 to 150 degree Celsius) for at least 40 seconds (20 seconds each part),” the advisory read.
CNN Philippines reported that bank notes that went through this process must have a “sanitized” label before being turned over to the BSP’s Cash Department.
Meanwhile, BSP Deputy Governor Chuchi Fonacier clarified that they would still continue to accept cash that are not sanitized, as well as coin deposits from banks, adding the central bank is prepared with its own disinfectant sprays in loading areas.
The guidelines also adopt strict security procedures inside the BSP’s Security Plant Complex in Quezon City, requiring bank representatives to wear personal protective equipment (PPEs) before entering the premises as well as subjecting them to security protocols and thermal scanning.
Central banks in various countries such as China and South Korea implemented same measures—removing bundles of banknotes from circulation and even burned or destroyed bundles of cash to curb the spread of the highly contagious disease.
China even placed bank notes coming from hospitals under deep disinfection using high temperatures and ultraviolet light.
However, the World Health Organization (WHO) said that the risk of virus transmission through bank notes is low.
