TOKYO: The debut of new bank notes in Japan, set for Wednesday, is causing headaches for restaurants and other businesses in the country.

Fukumen Tomo, a ramen shop in Tokyo, spent about 300,000 yen to replace ticket machine parts in May to accept the new 10,000-yen, 5,000-yen and 1,000-yen notes.

Tomonori Oikawa, the 53-year-old owner of the shop, complained that the notes are issued at the discretion of the government, but that there is no subsidy from it. “Bearing the full cost is financially difficult.”

Oikawa is considering the possibility of raising menu prices to cover the cost, but he is concerned that such a move may alienate customers.

Some local governments are providing aid to businesses so that they can handle the new bank notes. Starting Monday, Tokyo’s Katsushika Ward will provide small businesses with subsidies of up to 300,000 yen to cover half of the cost of purchasing ticket machines compatible with the new notes.

“We want to support the smooth replacement” of ticket machines, a ward official said.

Some firms are focusing on cashless payments rather than taking measures to be able to handle the new notes.

Tokyo-based Tosei Corp. began selling machines for laundromats that only accept cashless payments last autumn.

A Tosei official said more stores are adopting cashless payments-only machines as the new notes’ debut approaches. “Cashless payments will become more and more common with the spread of smartphone payments,” the official said.

Some young people are uninterested in the new notes.

“Many people around me use cashless payments,” said 21-year-old college student Ryushin Nakamoto. “The new notes haven’t been a topic of conversation, and I didn’t know that new notes were being issued for the first time in 20 years.”

Meanwhile, a 50-year-old Tokyo woman who said she prefers cash over cashless payments said, “I’m concerned that if vending machines can’t accept the new notes, I won’t be able to use them.”

On the other hand, a 27-year-old Tokyo woman showed understanding for the introduction of new notes, saying, “I think the issuance is meaningful because it can prevent the circulation of counterfeits.”

JIJI Press