The Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) on Tuesday released new local currency banknotes to improve market liquidity, but the move triggered a sharp spike in the parallel market exchange rate, raising fears of renewed inflationary pressure.
Since the ZiG was introduced in April 2024, the central bank has tightly controlled money supply, helping to rein in annual inflation to single digits — 4.1% in January 2026, the first such milestone in 27 years.
But after the exchange rate stabilized at around ZiG26 to the United State dollar for months, it spiked to ZiG 40 on Tuesday when the new notes began circulation.
Announcing the rollout, RBZ governor John Mushayavanhu said the issuance of the new banknotes followed a nationwide awareness campaign conducted from March 1 to 31.
“The issuance and circulation of the new series of ZiG banknotes was preceded by a successful nationwide educational and awareness campaign, during which the rollout plan was comprehensively articulated,” he said.
Mushayavanhu said the central bank, working with commercial banks, had put in place the necessary logistics to ensure a smooth rollout of the upgraded BiG5 ZiG banknotes.
“The new BiG5 ZiG banknote series has since been distributed countrywide in sufficient quantities to meet anticipated cash demand, consistent with stipulated daily and weekly withdrawal limits,” he said.
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He added that the rollout would be phased, starting with ZiG10 and ZiG20 notes, alongside the introduction of a new ZiG50 denomination from April 7, 2026. Higher denominations — ZiG100 and ZiG200 — will be introduced gradually, guided by transactional demand and prevailing monetary conditions.
Mushayavanhu said ZiG coins, first introduced on April 5, 2024, have also been reissued in adequate quantities, including ZiG1, ZiG2 and ZiG5, to support low-value transactions and ease pressure on smaller notes.
The RBZ said old and new ZiG banknotes will co-circulate indefinitely, with the older series to be phased out naturally as it is deposited into the banking system.
