Zimbabwe on Monday starts issuing "bond notes", its own currency equivalent to the US dollar in a bid to ease critical cash shortages amid widespread fears of a return to hyperinflation. The crisis-hit southern African country has used multiple foreign currencies, including the greenback since 2009 after a rate of inflation that peaked at 500 billion percent rendered the Zimbabwe dollar unusable. The country has experienced a severe shortage of US dollar banknotes in recent months which forced President Robert Mugabe's government to print what locals have dubbed "surrogate money".
