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Newly issued bills worth 10,000 won.
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New money snatched up by collectors, entrepreneurs who plan resale
In the early morning hours of January 22, money collectors and would-be ‘new bill brokers’ were lined up in front of the Bank of Korea to get their hands on the nation’s new 10,000-won and 1,000-won bills, low serial numbers intact. Armed with thick overcoats and blankets, some 200 people lined up as of three days ago. About 200 police officers were mobilized due to minor skirmishes during the waiting process, including an incident where latecomers decided they would simply form their own competing line, causing noisy altercations between those who had endured a longer wait. While the Bank of Korea originally planned to replace each person’s old bills with 100 new ones, the central bank revised the plan to only 90 new bills due to the arrival of more people than expected. The distribution began at 11:00 a.m., about one-and-a-half hours later than scheduled. Lee Sun-geun, 50, was the first to receive the new bills. "I stayed here for three days with my wife and daughter because the collection of the newest bills may spell big money."Wang Yong-gi, an official at the Bank of Korea, said, "People must think the new 10,000-won bills are worth collecting," citing the fact that last year’s introduction of the new 5,000-won bill did not result in any altercations.
