The Bank of Lithuania will cooperate with the police in the introduction of the euro

“In preparing for and during the cash exchange it is important to ensure the security of the assets and the personnel, as well as secure against possible fraud. We aim to achieve this by bringing together the Bank of Lithuania’s Security Department, commercial banks, Lithuania Post, money transportation and management service providers, as well as Lithuania’s police forces. Having received our request, the police will ensure the escort for the bank’s armoured transport, which will transport the litas and euro, utilising police vehicles,” says Vitas Vasiliauskas, Chairman of the Board of the Bank of Lithuania.

Today, in the agreement signed by the Bank of Lithuania and the Police Department, which will be valid until the middle of next year, it is provided that both institutions will cooperate in transporting the bank’s tangible assets — euro and litas banknotes and coins — in the territory of the Republic of Lithuania and how information will be exchanged, necessary for ensuring the security of the assets. Also it was agreed on the use of a common radio channel.

The Bank of Lithuanian will have to acquire 132 million units of euro banknotes and 370 million units of euro and euro cent coins to satisfy the demand for them at the time of euro adoption and to ensure their necessary stocks.

The Bank of Lithuania is going to borrow the amount of euro banknotes, necessary for our state to adopt the euro, from some national central bank within the Eurosystem. In the future, it would repay the debt by ordering and printing the euro amount borrowed in some banknotes and security documents printing works accredited by the European Central Bank (ECB) and having the right to print euro banknotes. It is planned that the euro banknotes will be delivered to Lithuania by air, via the ECB’s accredited air lines, by mid-September 2014 and safely brought to the Bank of Lithuania’s vaults.

The euro and euro cent coins needed by Lithuania will be minted at the Lithuanian Mint, operating in Vilnius. It is planned that by 1 October 2014 the number of coins and coin sets needed for the frontloading will be minted and delivered to the Bank of Lithuania’s vaults.

The Bank of Lithuania will begin the frontloading of euro and euro cent coins and coin sets to banks 3 months before the euro adoption date, while the distribution of euro banknotes — 2 months before the euro adoption date and will continue until the euro adoption day.

Euro adoption