Check your money. So far this year and in times of high inflation, banknote counterfeiting in Mexico has already exceeded those that occurred in 2020 and 2021.
From January to September, the Bank of Mexico (Banxico) has registered 276,225 false pieces. Criminals commit this crime through digital impressions, that is, with the use of a scanner, computer and inkjet or toner printer.
Banknote counterfeiting had reported its third consecutive year on the decline in 2021, but everything indicates that due to greater mobility, this crime returned to pre-pandemic levels.
Banxico data indicates that so far in 2022, the third quarter of the year was when there were more counterfeit bills in circulation, with June being the month with the highest figure: 44,190 counterfeit pieces.
Which banknotes are counterfeited the most?
And just as the habits of Mexicans have been changing due to the pandemic, criminals have also changed their preferences.
Banxico data shows that while in 2021, the 200-peso bill was the most counterfeited with 77.1 counterfeit pieces per million in circulation. Now, in 2022, the 50-peso bill is the most counterfeited: 86 pieces per million and the 200-peso bill became the second most counterfeited with 57 pieces per million.