The number of bounced cheques fell by 20.5 per cent in the first eight months of 2026 compared with the same period a year earlier, while their total value also declined, according to data released by the Central Bank of Cyprus (CBC) on Wednesday.

A total of 128 bounced cheques were recorded on the preliminary list between January and August 2026, compared with 161 during the corresponding period of 2025.

Their combined value fell to €315,581, from €365,490 in the first eight months of 2025, representing a decline of 13.7 per cent.

The monthly figures for August, however, showed a different trend, with the number of bounced cheques rising substantially compared with the same month last year.

A total of 27 bounced cheques were recorded in August 2026, compared with 16 in August 2025, an increase of 68.8 per cent.

Despite the rise in the number of cheques, their total value dropped sharply to €27,092, from €52,891 a year earlier, representing a decline of 48.8 per cent.

The CBC data also showed changes in the number of legal and natural persons recorded on the preliminary list.

During the first eight months of 2026, 52 legal persons and 24 natural persons were recorded, bringing the total number of persons to 76.

In the corresponding period of 2025, 46 legal persons and 36 natural persons had been recorded, for a total of 82 persons.

In August 2026, four legal persons and two natural persons were recorded, bringing the monthly total to six.

The same number of persons was recorded in August 2025, although the breakdown was different, with two legal persons and four natural persons.

Meanwhile, registrations in the Central Information Register (CIR) for issuers of bounced cheques totalled 86 persons between January and August 2026, compared with 80 during the same period of 2025.

The CBC clarified that these figures referred to registrations rather than deletions from the register.

As a result, the number of persons recorded in the data did not reflect subsequent deletions from the CIR.

The figures for the preliminary list showed that the 128 bounced cheques recorded during the first eight months of 2026 represented 60.1 per cent of the 213 cheques recorded throughout 2025.

Their combined value during the first eight months of 2026 was €315,581, equivalent to 50.1 per cent of the €630,249 recorded for the whole of 2025.