The mystery of why €50 notes have been disintegrating in Germany has been solved, writes Jackie Dent
German police have put it down to people using the notes to snort crystal methylamphetamine, the Times reports.
The €50 note has proved the most problematic, as it is said to be the right dimensions for taking the drug.
Police forces are advising consumers to use gloves whenever dealing with cash and to spend the notes as quickly as possible, because when a contaminated note comes into contact with human sweat, the two chemicals form an aggressive sulphuric acid. (There are no reported cases of injury as of yet.)
Drug-smeared money abounds, with various studies revealing traces of cocaine. Indeed, the Cuyahoga county coroner's office, in Ohio, conducted a random survey on 10 $1 bills that found traces of heroin, morphine, crystal meth, PCP and cocaine on the notes.
In Zimbabwe, notes are also dissolving, though drugs are not involved. Blogger Ethan Zuckerman
discovered that with the Zimbabwe dollar in free fall, all banknotes have a use-by date, after which they are technically worthless.
With the folding stuff clearly becoming perilous, perhaps the cashless society concept isn't so bad after all.
