Spent Tens of Millions on Washing Machines and Microwaves for COVID Disinfection, Ending Up 'Shattered'

Bank of Korea "If Banknote Damage Is Severe, Full Refund May Be Difficult"

Photos 2 and 3 show banknotes damaged after attempting to disinfect them with a microwave and trying to remove viruses by washing them in a washing machine. Photo by Bank of Korea

[Asia Economy Reporter Hanah Na] Cases of people tearing cash by putting it in washing machines out of vague fear of the COVID-19 virus, or disinfecting it in microwaves and burning it, have reached an extreme level.

According to the Bank of Korea, over 4.7 trillion won worth of money was discarded in 2020, with more than 640 million bills being disposed of. This is an increase of 2.2 million bills compared to the previous year and marks the highest record in 11 years since 2009.

A Bank of Korea official stated, "The discarded amount is equivalent to 114 five-ton trucks, and if lined up individually, the length would reach 87,967 km, enough to travel back and forth on the Gyeongbu Expressway 106 times."

Mr. A, after attending a funeral and returning home, poured tens of millions of won into a washing machine out of concern that condolence money might carry the COVID-19 virus. As a result, the bills could not withstand the strong rotation of the washing machine and were torn into pieces.

Mr. A visited the Bank of Korea to exchange the damaged bills for new ones. After two days of sorting by bank staff, 207 bills were exchanged in full, and 503 bills were exchanged at half value, totaling 22,925,000 won. The exact amount of money poured into the washing machine was not confirmed.

Mr. B heard a rumor that running bills through a microwave would disinfect them and kill the virus, so he put stored bills into a microwave and operated it. Eventually, some of the bills were severely damaged by burning, and the amount he received from the Bank of Korea in exchange was 5,245,000 won.

Meanwhile, the main reasons for currency damage investigated by the Bank of Korea were improper storage such as keeping bills under flooring leading to decay from moisture, accounting for 86,700 bills, and damage from fire totaling 57,700 bills. Careless handling such as putting bills into washing machines or shredders was also reported for 23,000 bills.

In cases where currency is damaged for these various reasons, visiting the Bank of Korea allows one to receive a full or partial refund depending on the conditions.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.