Nepal Rastra Bank signs $51.58 million deal with chinese firm for banknote printing

KATHMANDU: The Nepal Rastra Bank has signed an agreement with a Chinese company for the printing of banknotes of various denominations. The central bank has contracted ‘China Banknote Printing and Minting Corporation’ for printing 3.5 billion pieces of notes in five different types. The contract, valued at USD 51.58 million (equivalent to NPR 6.876 billion at the current exchange rate), was announced by the central bank.

The Nepal Rastra Bank awarded the contract to this company as it participated in the bidding process with a zero-cost proposal compared to other companies. The central bank has been spending an average of NPR 1.33 billion annually on banknote printing.

Although Governor Maha Prasad Adhikari had stated a preference for digital banking over printing notes with his signature, he made the decision to award the significant printing contract to the Chinese company towards the end of his tenure.

Recently, the central bank has been prioritizing China over India for banknote printing due to quality considerations. However, the problem of Nepali notes wearing out quickly has not been resolved.