Where Did All The Really Big Cash Money Bills Go?

I was recently watching an old episode of Let’s Make a Deal, a popular television game show that ran in various incarnations during the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s, with a new iteration still in production today. I noticed that on the older episodes of the show, then-host Monty Hall was handing contestants $500 and $1,000 bills as prizes. I got to thinking to myself, “Hmmm… I thought the Bureau of Engraving and Printing stopped making those large bills like in the 1930s…” And then I wondered, “Why?” Surely, it seems, a $500 or $1,000 bill might be much more practical these days, with inflation and all that jazz, than they were in the mid-20th century, when these large bills went the way of the dinosaur.

Those who know a thing or two about old United States currency realize the $500 and $1,000 bills weren’t even the biggest bills the nation had ever printed, in terms of denomination. Not by a long shot. In fact, the United States has also printed bills in denominations of $5,000, $10,000 and even $100,000. These large-denomination bills were last printed in 1945, though they remained in use by the Federal Reserve System until 1969. While the notes are still legal tender, they are increasingly scarce as those that remain in circulation are withdrawn from use.

The Federal Reserve System cites a “lack of use” for the reason that the large bills with face values of more than $100 were discontinued from circulation. However, there are many other reasons that these large bills were removed from commerce. Among them were the risks associated with money laundering and organized crime, as well as general counterfeiting concerns that such high-value bills posed. Additionally, the cost of setting up plates and printing equipment for high-denomination bills that saw relatively small print runs didn’t make much fiscal sense. In the end, large bills fell by the wayside as smaller denominations proved more efficient for the purposes of serving day-to-day commerce needs. Even still, large-denomination Federal Reserve Notes are highly coveted by banknote collectors, who gladly pay well more than face value to acquire these unusual and increasingly rare bills.