A mixture of confusion and the usual last-minute rush saw the Central Bank experience its second "euro queue" in the past three months yesterday.A long queue formed outside the Bank on Dame Street in Dublin as members of the public rushed to change pesetas, francs, lire and deutschmarks accumulated from holidays and business trips into euro.
The deadline for exchange of euro-zone banknotes passed yesterday.
Added to these were scores of people who turned up thinking - mistakenly - that it was also the last day the Bank would accept Irish notes and coins.
"Some people are under the impression that we're stopping exchanging Irish notes and coins today, which is not true at all," said Mr Hugh O'Donnell, manager of corporate services at the Bank.
"The two stories are getting a little bit mixed up and what we're seeing is a mixture of people, half of whom are seeking to change the deutschmarks and French francs they have been hanging on to, and some coming with their Irish notes and coins, which there is no need for them to be doing in any particular rush today at all."
Mr O'Donnell said the Bank was "somewhat disappointed" by the last-minute rush as it had been advertising the deadline for the exchange of euro-zone banknotes for some time.
"The notion that there was a whole group of people who would have to come into us on the last day is not something we would have anticipated," he said
With extra staff seconded to the exchange area, he said it was coping as best it could in the circumstances.
Outside, people were being advised they would have to wait up to 45 minutes to be served. "I've been told 45 minutes but I think it might be a bit longer than that," said Mr John Meade from Blackrock, who was there to exchange Greek and Dutch currencies for his parents.
Mr Anthony O'Connor, from Dunshaughlin, Co Meath, said it was worth the wait to change his Spanish pesetas. "I just heard it on the news and I knew I had some in the wardrobe somewhere, so I just rooted it out and came in here," he said.
The Central Bank was advising people with substantial amounts of foreign currency to post it to the Central Bank of the relevant country where it would be exchanged and sent back.
