[tryingagainbro]

Yeah BUT you can bet your last dollar or euro that they will ask questions if you show up at a local bank with a few 500 euro notes, 20 years from now. Lots of questions and reports to the police will follow.

And they will not be accepted as "legal tender" to settle drug /illegal deals, so they are out, in a way.

[jandrese]

Wouldn't you be asked some pointed questions if you walked into a bank with a stack of 500s? I know in the US there are people who run cash based businesses (construction/landscaping for example) that end up having to make special arrangements with their bank to avoid getting the third degree every time they bring in a deposit.