Sri Lanka bank Notes
with Bent Sword Watermark?

The LTTE founded and ran the Tamil Eelam Bank (BoT) headquarters in Killinochchi. The bank did most normal Bank transactions and maintained current and saving accounts, taking Deposits and giving loans with a LTTE guarantee which ensured that 100% of the loans were paid back.

In the 1990's I heard a story that LTTE printed Sri Lanka currency notes with a watermark which had the lion with the sword bent. This story was even confirmed by an intelligence officer who was one of my former students in University of Colombo, saying that he had seen such notes found on the body of a LTTE terrorist, and they were handed over to the CID. As a collector of Sri Lanka coins and Banknotes I remember looking for such a note. In 2003 I did find a Gold token, but I never found a banknote which had a lion with a bent sword watermark and no specimen was ever shown to me.

In early 2015, some ex-army workmen doing civil works said they too had seen LTTE notes and knows someone who had few such notes. After much persuasion I had them borrowed and brought to me for inspection. This immediately explained the Story. The Notes predated 1985 and showed the watermark of a lion on hind legs with a bent whip in the right paw (Ratnapura Lion). This watermark which was used from 1941 to 1985 on all Ceylon currency had been mistaken for "forged" LTTE notes.

Watermarks on Ceylon/Sri Lanka BankNotes

1941-1985

1987-1992
1994-2006
Currency notes older than 10 years in most southern regions of Sri Lanka would have gone completely out of circulation by the late 1990's, as for example the older design currency issued before 2009 are now rarely seen in circulation 10 years later. However since CBSL weren't replacing notes in North-East during the civil war from 1983 to 2009, the older notes with dates before 1986 with older watermark would have been used into the early 2000's. The 1996 article says The banks also use very old currency bank notes which are put together with cello-tape or gum.

The "Forged" LTTE Banknote mystery had been resolved after 20 years. The bent whip in paw of Lion had been clearly mistaken for a Bent sword. The knowledge of the older watermarks had even been forgotten by the CID.

In 2012 November an eBay dealer from the UK posted few Rubber stamped notes Sri Lanka Currency Notes with the LTTE Logo. They however proved to be fantasies when I found that seller had purchased on eBay the unstamped notes with same serial number, a few weeks previously.

Return to notes.lakdiva.org.lk a website for Banknotes of Ceylon and Sri Lanka since 1785.