According to local reports, the Bank of South Sudan will soon be issuing a new high value 500-pound banknote, as a result of soaring inflation in the country.

The 500-pound South Sudan banknote will be the highest denomination in the current note series, officially valued at around US $3.84 at today’s date.

Whilst one US dollar is currently officially valued at around 130 South Sudanese pounds, on the black market, one US dollar is reportedly currently being exchanged for around 300 South Sudanese pounds.

According to local news organisations, the requirement for a new high value banknote is a direct result of souring inflation seen in South Sudan during the past four and a half years since the beginning of the civil war. Consequently, the country’s citizens are reportedly shopping with vast quantities of banknotes. The  Central Bank has published a statement advising that a 500-pound circulating banknote will reduce the number of notes that people have to carry to make their daily purchases.

The new banknote will join the existing South Sudanese banknote family consisting of the 5, 10 and 25 piastre and the 1, 5, 10, 20, 25, 50 and 100-pound notes.

Source: Sudan Tribune