The manager of the Bank of the Republic (Banco de la República), Juan José Echavarría, asked the Congress of the Republic to debate the elimination of three zeros of the national currency. Legislators from several parliamentary groups supported the proposal.

The head of the Bank of the Republic proposed the aforementioned measure as a way to continue with a financial policy implemented in 2016, which was the replacement of the expression “thousands” in letters in new notes,. “Hopefully, the Congress will support and pass this measure,” Echavarría said.

According to the head of the Bank of the Republic, this change “would insert Colombia among developed countries.” In addition, he considered that producing new bills would be cheaper than minting new coins.

In the last 18 years, this bill has been unsuccessfully debated in three occasions. Last time, it was introduced by legislators from the ruling party Partido de la U. However, it failed to pass during in it’s debate in Committee.

Echavarría’s announcement generated repercussions on legislators from all over the political spectrum. Sen. Antonio Guerra (Cambio Radical) assured that he hopes the bill is debated once Congress is back in sessions again in March. Meanwhile, Rep. Lina Barrera (Partido Conservador) and member of the Committee on Economic Issues at the House of Representatives, stated she is favorable to discuss the bill. However, she warned “first we must analyze whether the economy and the citizens are prepared for this drastic change.”