Kyrgyzstan will begin printing 20 and 50 som banknotes on November 17. It was announced during the opening of the new building of the National Bank of the Kyrgyz Republic, attended by President Sadyr Japarov.
The president’s press secretary, Askat Alagozov, published a video in which Sadyr Japarov asked whether Kyrgyzstan would begin printing banknotes independently before the new year.
In response, Presidential Affairs Department Chief, Kanybek Tumanbaev, and National Bank Chairman, Melis Turgunbaev, reported that all paperwork had been completed and that printing of 20 and 50 som banknotes would begin on November 17.
The president also asked whether printing of all other banknotes, up to 5,000 som, would begin in the middle of next year, to which he also received affirmative answer.
In March of this year, Uchkun enterprise announced the start of production of Kyrgyz soms. The first sample was presented to the President. At the time, Melis Turgunbaev, Chairman of the National Bank, noted that the initial stage would be printing small-denomination banknotes.
Kyrgyzstan announced that it would begin printing national currency banknotes domestically back in 2023.
The issuance of Kyrgyzstan’s national currency, the som, is controlled by the National Bank of the Kyrgyz Republic.
Previously, banknotes were printed abroad with the participation of international printing houses Oberthur Fiduciaire (France) and Crane Currency (USA).
According to the National Bank, approximately 584 million soms were spent on the production of banknotes and coins in 2023.
The cost of printing one banknote is not disclosed, but the central bank notes that it does not exceed its face value.
Banknotes in denominations of 20, 50, 100, 200, 500, 1000, and 5000 soms are currently in circulation.
The new series of banknotes, introduced in 2023–2024, have modern security features such as holographic stripes, color-shifting elements, and micro-optics, increasing resistance to counterfeiting.
