MOSCOW, Jan 15 (AFP -NT) - The US Treasury opened an information centre here on Friday with a telephone hotline to give advice to Russians concerned about the introduction of new 100-dollar notes, a statement from the US embassy said. The new bills, unveiled in the United States in September, are due here at the end of the month or early in February, officially to help combat the circulation of forgeries. The helpline will operate from Monday to Friday, providing information and advice on the new notes, the statement said. "The information centre is the Treasury's way of responding to the need for information to ensure a smooth, gradual transition to the 1996 series notes," said William Murden, Treasury attache at the US embassy. "Russia is probably the largest holder of US dollar notes outside the United States, and it is estimated that 80 percent of the US dollar notes in Russia is held in 100-dollar bills," he said. The introduction of the new notes would not affect the value of the existing ones, and the US government guaranteed that the old notes would not be devalued, demonetised or recalled, the press release said. Earlier this month, bank deputy chairman Alexander Khandruyev calculated that individual Russians held more than 12 billion dollars in all. lp/hl AFP /AA1234/121424 GMT JAN 96

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