The new Rs 200 note that will hit banks and ATMs soon The new Rs 200 note that will hit banks and ATMs soon

The finance ministry on Wednesday notified the introduction of the new Rs 200 currency notes for the first time, paving the way for the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to soon launch the notes to improve the circulation of lower-denomination currency notes. The new Rs 200 notes could be in circulation as early as September, said an official source.

Finance minister Arun Jaitley, however, made it clear that the government was not considering banning Rs 2,000 notes. Recently the central bank introduced a new series of Rs 50 currency notes. These new fluorescent blue notes in the Mahatma Gandhi series looked slightly smaller and slimmer than the existing Rs 50 notes.

However, the government is unlikely to relaunch the Rs 1,000 bank notes, according to the source. The government had demonetised the old Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes in November last year, replacing around 86 per cent of the total value of currency in circulation. While the new Rs 2,000 notes were launched to remonetise fast, there was a shortage of lower-denomination notes.

In a gazette notification on Wednesday, the department of economic affairs said: “In exercise of powers conferred by sub-section (1) of section 24 of the RBI Act, 1934 and on the recommendation of the central board of directors of the RBI, the central government hereby specifies the denomination of bank notes of the value of Rs 200.”

(With FE inputs)

📣 The Indian Express is now on Telegram. Click here to join our channel (@indianexpress) and stay updated with the latest headlines

For all the latest Business News, download Indian Express App.