Electronic payments to be encouraged ahead of changeover

Businesses are being urged to encourage the use of electronic means of payment in order to reduce the "cash management load" in the run-up to the euro changeover.

Speaking at a seminar, Bank of Valletta's executive head of the euro programme, John Cassar Torreggiani, said the bank was committed to ensuring a seamless transition for its clients.

To make this transition possible it was also important for businesses to deposit surplus Maltese lira notes and coins well in advance of e-day to reduce the amount of currency exchange, he said.

The seminar was entitled Practical Aspects Related To The Euro Changeover Project For The Business Community.

Peter James Sant, BOV's senior economics officer EU affairs, said that in order to facilitate the euro adoption process, banks will undertake all Lm/E exchanges at the irrevocably fixed conversion rate, without the application of any exchange charges.

Cheques issued until the end of December will continue being issued in lira currency while those issued after January 1 will be issued in the euro currency.

He said clients' bank accounts will be automatically coverted to euros over a number of weeks. On January 2 and 3, BOV branches will be open for business to convert Maltese cash into euro.

Joe Baldacchino, manager of the cash centre, urged shop owners to calculate how much euro float they will need to operate since they will be receiving cash in liri and tendering change in euros.

He said the bank has prepared starter packs for retailers with €131 (Lm56.24) in different denominations. He warned retailers to study the security features in order to be able to easily detect counterfeit notes.

In his presentation, Ivo Camilleri, head of BOV's IT services, gave a preview of the processes that will see the automatic conversion of ATMs and electronic point of sale terminals to euro. The smallest denomination that will be available in ATMs will be €10.