THE Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe is engaging the business community as part of the ongoing awareness campaign on the new and upgraded ZiG banknote series to ensure wide acceptance of the local currency, first introduced in April 2024 to replace the inflation-weary Zimbabwe dollar.
The upgraded ZiG notes — introduced as part of the BiG5 series — are primarily meant to address poor physical quality, enhance security and increase transactional convenience The upgrade is also part of a broader, long-term strategy to build confidence in the local currency and deepen its usage in an economy heavily dominated by the US dollar.Financial analysis reports
Zimbabwe’s economy operates as a dual-currency system where the US dollar remains dominant, but the ZiG has gained significant traction, representing roughly 35-40 percent of transactions in the National Payments System.
Presenting the 2026 Monetary Policy Statement on February 27, RBZ Governor Dr John Mushayavanhu said the central bank would introduce a new family of ZiG banknotes from April 7, 2026, comprising ZiG10, ZiG20, 50.
The central bank chief pointed out that large 100 and 200 denominations will be introduced later, as and when required.
Alongside the 1, 2 and 5 ZiG coins, the central bank had put into circulation 10 and 20 ZiG denominations, to manage inflation expectations at the beginning, but the bank intended to later on introduce the ZiG50, ZiG100 and ZiG200 denominations, which will now be part of the upgraded BiG 5 banknote series.AI strategy consulting
To facilitate small change, Dr Mushayavanhu said the coins series remains valid.
Since its introduction, the ZiG has remained largely stable, laying the bedrock for key milestones that include a plunge in annual inflation from 98,5 percent in April 2025 to 3,8 percent in February, while the exchange rate has hovered around 27/US$1.
Similarly, the parallel market premium has narrowed from over 100 percent to less than 20 percent, which has anchored price stability, given that prices in Zimbabwe tend to track exchange rate movement.
As the central bank raises awareness of the new ZiG banknote series, it is also rolling out more POS machines to support digital transactions in local currency.
Responding to questions from Zimpapers Business Hub, Dr Mushayavanhu said the introduction of the upgraded ZiG banknote series was in response to stakeholder concerns regarding the quality of the pioneering ZiG10 and ZiG20 banknote series.
He said the central bank is satisfied with the quality of the upgraded ZiG banknotes series and urged the public to accept and use them. “To ensure greater acceptance and wider use of ZiG across the goods and service value chain, RBZ’s provincial leaders and even the level of Governors have been holding dedicated sessions with the business community during the awareness campaign to encourage the uptake and use of local currency,” said Dr Mushayavanhu.
“The awareness campaign has also shown that RBZ, in collaboration with Bankers Association of Zimbabwe (BAZ), will need to amplify efforts to roll out more point of sale (POS) machines to support increased use of digital platforms for both ZiG and foreign currencies.-herald
