i have several thousand old Nicaraguan cordobas from the mid-80's. where can i exchange them in NYC?

Question

I have three bills 5,000; 1,000 and 50 for a total of 6,500 cordobas. I tried to cash them in at JFK airport at a money exchange booth as well as at a money exchange place on a recent trip to Costa Rica. However, no one would take them and change them in for U.S. dollars because they were not in the newest book of accepted world currency. I am not a collector of old currency and would just like to cash these bills in for U.S. currency if this is possible. It would seem if there is any place that could cash them in then it would be in New York City, but I don't know where I might do this or if it is even possible. Any thoughts?

Answer 1

Nicaragua had serious problems with rampant inflation during the Sandanista regime of the 1980s. They issued banknotes in ever increasing denominations up to 10,000,000 Cordobas. These all became worthless in the early 1990s when Nicaragua introduced a new Cordoba currency which is still in circulation today. The highest denomination is 500 Cordobas.
The links below are the web site of the Banco Central de Nicaragua, which includes photos of all current and redeemable banknotes.