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Paying in large amount of £50 notes to bank
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Bluemax220
Posts: 2 Newbie

Hi,
My mother (aged 77) has a monetary challenge that hopefully you can advise on and help solve.
She comes from that generation of people that has kept a sizeable amount of cash 'at home' - over £10k - most of it in £50 notes.
Now that the bank of England has changed the design etc, she needs to convert the money to the new denomination. However, when I went to the bank (HSBC) recently they said I had to prove where the money came from.
I explained that the money was withdrawn from her bank (HSBC) in stages around 1992-1995 and that my mother no longer held bank statements dating back 30 years. When I asked if the bank had such records, they told me that they only have to hold records for 6 years and would not likely have info dating that far back.
So, what to do? The bank basically have said that they cannot/will not help as they cannot authenticate the origin of the money and it contravenes their policies. When I asked when these policies were brought in (and if they pre-dated 1995), they said they did not know, although that was unlikely.
So, I am worried that my mother stands to lose thousands of pounds because she cannot convert the old currency to the new.
I hope some kind soul can help solve this conundrum and bring a little stress relief to my mother.
Thanks in advance.
My mother (aged 77) has a monetary challenge that hopefully you can advise on and help solve.
She comes from that generation of people that has kept a sizeable amount of cash 'at home' - over £10k - most of it in £50 notes.
Now that the bank of England has changed the design etc, she needs to convert the money to the new denomination. However, when I went to the bank (HSBC) recently they said I had to prove where the money came from.
I explained that the money was withdrawn from her bank (HSBC) in stages around 1992-1995 and that my mother no longer held bank statements dating back 30 years. When I asked if the bank had such records, they told me that they only have to hold records for 6 years and would not likely have info dating that far back.
So, what to do? The bank basically have said that they cannot/will not help as they cannot authenticate the origin of the money and it contravenes their policies. When I asked when these policies were brought in (and if they pre-dated 1995), they said they did not know, although that was unlikely.
So, I am worried that my mother stands to lose thousands of pounds because she cannot convert the old currency to the new.
I hope some kind soul can help solve this conundrum and bring a little stress relief to my mother.
Thanks in advance.
0
Comments
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Smaller chunks across more banks?
And maybe as a last resort Exchanging old banknotes | Bank of England2 -
She won't lose the money, the Bank of England will always pay the bearer of the note.
But yes for money laundering reasons you will either need to prove where it is from, or do a lot of small trips.
Even in-person at the Bank of England they will want ID and to know where the money is from.2 -
Deposit a small amount in to any bank account you have available. Do so every week. £200 this week, £150 next into £300 the week after into, say, 5 accounts and that takes care of about a third of the amount. Then transfer the money to mom's account.I’m a Forum Ambassador and I support the Forum Team on Debt Free Wannabe and Old Style Money Saving boards. If you need any help on these boards, do let me know. Please note that Ambassadors are not moderators. Any posts you spot in breach of the Forum Rules should be reported via the report button, or by emailing forumteam@moneysavingexpert.com. All views are my own and not the official line of MoneySavingExpert.
"Never retract, never explain, never apologise; get things done and let them howl.” Nellie McClung
⭐️🏅😇3 -
Once this is sorted please try and talk her out of ever keeping so much cash at home again.4
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Brie said:Deposit a small amount in to any bank account you have available. Do so every week. £200 this week, £150 next into £300 the week after into, say, 5 accounts and that takes care of about a third of the amount. Then transfer the money to mom's account.
I thought any sort of "pattern" of depositing (even small amounts of) cash could result in AML checks and accounts temporarily frozen.
Surely that's classic launderers behaviour?How's it going, AKA, Nutwatch? - 12 month spends to date = 2.60% of current retirement "pot" (as at end May 2025)3 -
It's not just HSBC's policy. They are asking for proof of where the money has come from because all banks/building societies have to follow anti money laundering laws.
Smaller amounts over longer period of time will probably work?
Don't overly panic about the amount of time to do this in though.
The end of September deadline for using them just applies to general circulation, for example, use in shops.
Long after that you will be able to pay into banks/post office/Bank of England so your mum won't ended up out of pocket.
https://www.bankofengland.co.uk/news/2021/september/one-year-left-to-spend-your-paper-20-and-50-banknotes
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Sea_Shell said:I thought any sort of "pattern" of depositing (even small amounts of) cash could result in AML checks and accounts temporarily frozen.
Maybe an alternative is for "mom" to provide a letter to say "here's the money I've been saving for you Blue" and then Blue can take that to the bank as proof of origin.
I’m a Forum Ambassador and I support the Forum Team on Debt Free Wannabe and Old Style Money Saving boards. If you need any help on these boards, do let me know. Please note that Ambassadors are not moderators. Any posts you spot in breach of the Forum Rules should be reported via the report button, or by emailing forumteam@moneysavingexpert.com. All views are my own and not the official line of MoneySavingExpert.
"Never retract, never explain, never apologise; get things done and let them howl.” Nellie McClung
⭐️🏅😇1 -
OP, are you on any means tested benefits?How's it going, AKA, Nutwatch? - 12 month spends to date = 2.60% of current retirement "pot" (as at end May 2025)0
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Just take £500 into your bank. Don't pay in - ask.to swap them
No bank.will query your wanting to have £500 cash at home for emergencies.
Repeat as required5 -
Olinda99 said:Just take £500 into your bank. Don't pay in - ask.to swap them
No bank.will query your wanting to have £500 cash at home for emergencies.
Repeat as requiredBanks won't just swap cash any more - you have to pay it into your account and then withdraw it.
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