The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Thursday said 97.76% of the Rs 2,000 denomination banknotes have returned to the banking system.  Only Rs 7,961 crore worth of the withdrawn notes are still with the

 public.

On 19 May 2023, the RBI announced the withdrawal of Rs 2,000 notes from circulation.

The total value of Rs 2,000 banknotes in circulation, which was Rs 3.56 lakh crore at the close of business on 19 May 2023, has declined to Rs 7,961 crore at the close of business on 30 April 2024, the RBI said in a statement. 

The central bank said that Rs 2,000 banknotes will continue to be legal tender.

The Rs 2,000 banknotes were introduced in November 2016, following the demonetisation of the then-prevailing Rs 1,000 and Rs 500 banknotes.