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Then Taoiseach Bertie Ahern (right) celebrates the adoption of the Euro currency on the 1st of January 2002 with with Jim O'Neill and his wife Marian, proprietors of O'Neill's newsagents. Paul Faith/PA Archive/Press Association Images
irish pound
Check behind the couch, there's still €231.3m worth of Punt hanging around
The Central Bank exchanged €1,600,000 worth of Irish pound in Euro between January 1 and December 17 this year.
LESS THAN ONE percent of the defunct Irish pound still outstanding was exchanged into Euro in 2013.
Of the €232.9 million worth of notes still hiding in old jackets or under mattresses at the start of the year, just €1.6 million was exchanged between the January 1 and December 17, or roughly €6000 per working day.
This is down just under €1 million from the year previous, and leaves €231.3 million still at large.
These figures, supplied to TheJournal.ie by the Central Bank, show that the amount exchanged in still higher than the low of €1.3 million in 2007. This figure tripled amid the 2008 financial crisis.
Since the switch to Euro in 2002, 22 per cent of the €299.7 million worth of punt unexchaged on December 31 2002 has been converted in Euro.
This figure has fallen steadily since 2003.
The amount of coins in redeemed each year is generally not included in these figures. The number exchanged in 2013 is not yet available, but the value redeemed has dipped below €500,000 per annum since 2009.
If you’ve noticed a few stray punt lying around, you can either post them to the Central Bank’s Currency Centre, or pop into the Central Bank on Dame Street in Dublin city centre. Full instructions are available online.
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