Citizens demonstrated on the streets of Venezuela on Friday against the government’s decision to demonetise its biggest bolivar currency note. The country’s socialist government under President Nicolás Maduro had said the notes would have to be handed over starting Wednesday, but citizens said new notes were nowhere to be seen on Thursday, when they were due. Citizens carried bags of the now-defunct 100-bolivar notes, waving them in the air and looting shops that did not accept the old currency, Reuters reported.

The move is part of the Venezuela government’s attempts to fix the country’s struggling economy. The 100 bolivar note is officially worth 15 US cents but has been fetching as little as 2 US cents in the black market. According to data from Venezuela’s central bank, 100-bolivar bills made up 48% of all bills and coins in circulation in in November. The government also claimed the demonetisation would break the back of the mafias on the Colombia border, though economists have widely criticised the move.

Citizens have also been complaining that the deadline to change the notes has been erratically enforced, with government-sanctioned extensions not being executed by banks and businesses, the New York Times reported. Similar to the situation in India, which demonetised 86% of its currency on November 8, citizens have been forced to wait for hours at banks, ATMs lie empty and many are unable to buy basic supplies such as food and gas.