Syria began the process of introducing a new national currency on Saturday.

Axar.az reports that earlier this week, a decree by President Ahmad Shara stated that the old Syrian currency would be gradually withdrawn from circulation by the central bank according to a set schedule and through special exchange offices.

The central bank governor, Mohles Nazer, shared on social media that after several weeks of preparation, the official exchange of old Syrian pounds for new banknotes began on Saturday morning.

According to the presidential decree published by the state news agency SANA, “the new Syrian currency will be issued by removing two zeros from the nominal value of the old currency.”

This means that 100 old Syrian pounds will now equal 1 new Syrian pound.

The largest denomination of the old currency was 5,000 Syrian pounds, while the largest of the new currency is 500 pounds.