That news came as a relief to many Venezuelans who had become accustomed to carrying around small bags even for the most basic transactions. Lunch in Caracas, for example, could cost 10,000 bolívars, requiring carrying 100 bills that might be counted in machines at the register.

But on Sunday Mr. Maduro made a second announcement: The 100-bolívar notes would be taken out of circulation almost immediately as a move to combat organized crime groups that he said were hoarding them. The president also announced that he would temporarily close the border with Colombia, where he said the bills were being traded on the black market for dollars.

On Friday, Venezuelan news media said the lines had resulted in chaotic scenes in several cities in the country, including El Callao and Puerto La Cruz, where there had been protests and outbreaks of looting.

There were also confused scenes at banks like the Banesco branch in the El Hatillo neighborhood here. On Thursday, it had been flooded by hundreds of people demanding to make deposits. On Friday, the bank, which was out of money to make exchanges, was nearly empty. Mario Rafael Piña, a teller, said the bank had no idea when it would receive the higher-denomination bills.