The Central Bank will be closed for business on Christmas Day and Boxing Day and on January 1, 2008.

On January 2, 3 and 4, the bank will be offering a limited service to cater mainly for the exchange of Maltese currency notes and coins into euro by the public. The service will be offered from 8.30 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Customers are advised that amounts up to Lm250 will be exchanged immediately but sums in excess of this amount must be left in custody with the Central Bank against an official receipt. The actual settlement of the transaction, preferably by cheque, will be executed within two working days.

Cheques can either be collected personally or else they will be sent by post. Customers who opt to collect their cheque or cash in person will be required to present both the official receipt handed to them by the bank, as well as their identity card. No charges will be levied on these exchanges.

Customers wishing to exchange amounts in excess of 100 coins into euro are requested to sort these coins in advance by denomination.

The bank reminded the public that the exchange of notes and coins will be subject to all the regulations currently in force under the Prevention of Money Laundering and Funding of Terrorism Regulations 2003. Thus, customers are requested to be in possession of their identity card when exchanging notes and coins.

These regulations also require that for any transaction, which in this case would be the exchange of currency notes and coins, by a customer on behalf of a third party, full identification must be supplied of both the applicant and any person on whose behalf the applicant is acting. The applicant must furthermore be duly authorised by the principal and present the latter's identity card.

The bank will not be encashing cheques on January 2 but the Malta Coins Distribution Centre will be selling Maltese lira and euro-denominated numismatic products until 1.30 p.m.

The Central Bank said that throughout January and February, it will also be exchanging, without charge, Cyprus pound banknotes into euro at the irrevocably fixed conversion rate of the Cyprus pound against the euro. The maximum amount per transaction will be €1,000.

The bank's library will be closed for stocktaking from next Monday to December 31, both days included.