The Asociación de Comerciantes y Empresarios Nueva Andalucía in Almería came up with the idea of accepting the old pesetas during the Christmas and post-Christmas sales period as a means of possibly stimulating consumer spending.
The results were so amazing that the project is being extended…until next Christmas.
Over the initial period, around 3 million pesetas were spent in the shops, not only in the capital but all over the province. It is now thought that by the end of February, some 30 million of the old currency will have re-emerged and will be spent.
These old pesetas have been re-emerging for all sorts of reasons. There are those who discovered pesetas in an old coat pocket, found long-forgotten hordes in the bottom of a trunk as well as some who just held on to notes and coins in varying amounts.
Quite a few people have been presenting coins and notes dating back to the Civil War! In some cases, the Bank of Spain has had to be consulted as to the validity of some of these notes. Not all have turned out to be usable.