Most Europeans never saw banknotes of 500 euros, and rejecting them will not affect honest citizens. As the Guardian writes, in the police service Evrosouza believe that such a banknote of large denomination are often used by criminal elements, so the European Central Bank’s decision to refuse their release would have a severe impact on crime.
According to Europol, the 500-Euro banknotes account for about 30 percent of the value of all cash in circulation. But they are used very rarely, such a large sum are made very rarely. It is this fact causes concern among law enforcement agencies.
“We welcome the decision of the ECB, this is good news for the fight against organized crime and terrorism, – said the Director of Europol Rob Wainwright. According to him, the 500-Euro banknotes can be used for money laundering or financing of extremist activity (1 million in such bills weighs only 2 kg). However, until now, law-enforcement agencies have no direct evidence of this. But they may appear in the future: Europol is ready to cooperate with various countries and financial institutions in the process of return and exchange of these bills and investigating suspicious cases.
The issue of banknotes of 500 euros will be discontinued at the end of 2018. But the bills will continue to be means of payment and remain in circulation in perpetuity.
