THE VALUE of €500 notes in circulation has soared to €185 billion in the four years since the euro was introduced as the high-denomination bill becomes the banknote of choice for international criminals.

Strong demand for the €500 note led the European Central Bank almost to double the value of the bills that it printed to €95 billion last year, from €51.8 billion in 2004. No new €500 notes had been printed in the previous two years. After the addition of 294 million new €500 notes in the past two years, the denomination now accounts for the most value in circulation of any euro note.

The €50 note is next, with €181.2 billion-worth in circulation, while the €5 is last, at €6.4 billion.

Drug-traffickers and other criminals — as well as legitimate users — are thought to be conducting business increasingly in euros rather than dollars because it has bigger bills. High-denomination notes are a useful tool for drug-smugglers: a briefcase filled with €500 notes is about six times as valuable as one filled with the highest-denomination American note, the $100 bill. The highest-value British note, the £50, is worth even less.

Yet the dollar is still more commonly held after years as the currency of choice, for legitimate business people and criminals alike. It is estimated that well over half of the $700 billion-worth of dollar-denominated notes and coins currently in circulation are outside the United States.

The euro is catching up fast, with supplies growing at about 20 per cent a year, three times as fast as the American currency.

There are now €565.2 billion-worth of notes in circulation and €16.6 billion of coins, giving a total of €581.8 billion.

The US Federal Reserve gave up issuing higher-value bills in 1969 because of “lack of use”.