Banknotes
Canadians want more women on banknotes, poll shows
Bank of Canada’s banknotes should reflect more gender equality and a better celebration of women, according to the Canadians who participated in an online survey by the central bank
New Zealand’s banknotes get first upgrade since 1999
Reserve Bank unveils a ‘brighter, more modern look’ for its banknotes, and a host of new security features; net cost will be NZ$40 million over five years
Central Bank of Iraq updates 5,000 and 25,000 dinar banknotes
The central bank says the new banknotes will coexist with their predecessors; most notable change sees addition of transparent window on 25,000 note
National Bank of Denmark to outsource production of banknotes and coins
The National Bank of Denmark will outsource all of its printing and minting services to an external supplier in 2016, with an estimated saving of $17 million by 2020
Bank of Canada will consult public on future banknote designs
Bank of Canada launches a nationwide consultation on banknote design principles, after a report concluding that Canadians should have increased participation in the process
National Bank of Belgium to close half its remaining branches
Belgian central bank reveals plans to close its branches in Mons and Hasselt in 2016, which are predominantly involved in processing cash
Portuguese central banker warns new €10 banknote may not be accepted by all vending machines
Bank of Portugal board member says he cannot guarantee the note will be accepted by all machines, as owners are responsible for making necessary software changes
‘Flower power’ drives new Dominican Republic banknote series
The Dominican Republic is issuing upgraded banknotes to include the country’s new national flower; Israel and eurozone also introducing new notes in the market
De La Rue ‘preferred bidder' for next Bank of England printing deal
UK printer expected to sign contract with central bank next month and start producing new notes in April; BoE hired Innovia Security to supply polymer substrate in March
Uzbek central bank launches mobile app to meet ‘growing needs’ of online audience
Users can view specimens of banknotes and coins and check the latest exchange rates; central bank expects it to be ‘popular’ among 3,000 people who visit website each day
Reserve Bank of India to trial ‘plastic banknotes’
Annual report details plans to run a ‘field trial’ of plastic banknotes by 2015, in addition to several other initiatives aimed at improving the central bank’s cash management
Euro banknote counterfeiting rises 4.4% year-on-year
‘Europa’ series will not address forgery problem until 2015; Eurosystem central banks urge consumers to ‘look, feel and tilt’ notes to look out for counterfeits
UAE central bank to put Braille on banknotes
Emirati authority joins Hong Kong in using feature rejected by the Bank of England and Bank of Canada, on the basis that not all blind people read Braille
New Zealand mulls coloured coins
Geoff Bascand reveals details about the RBNZ’s forthcoming banknote series; suggests new technologies could ‘supplant cash’ in years to come
Central banks test ‘dry ice' banknote cleaning technology
Banks to test whether ‘supercritical' CO2 can rid notes of filth without damaging security features; central banks spend $10 billion to replace 150 billion banknotes each year
Central Bank of Kuwait puts own building on new banknote
Banknote series unveiled yesterday will come into circulation on June 29; new features include raised print to help blind people tell which note they are holding
A new wave for polymer banknotes
Does the Bank of England’s move to introduce substrate banknotes represent a ‘tipping point’ for polymer currency? By Tristan Carlyle.
Iceland prepares to phase out smallest banknote
Central Bank of Iceland hints at replacing the 500 krónur banknote with a coin, and scrapping the three lowest value coins altogether; introduced new 10,000 krónur note last year
Bank of England puts 19th century minutes online
Newly released archival material reveals daring exploits of staff during WW1; the battle to stem an epidemic of counterfeiting in the 18th and 19th century; and more
Bank of Namibia replaces ‘ageing’ banknotes one year after issuance
Central bank reissued the lowest denomination banknotes in its 2012 banknote series after they were found to be ‘ageing faster than expected’
RBA reveals details of ‘next generation’ banknote project
Quarterly bulletin gives insights into plans for the first Australian banknote change in 20 years, including new print methods, security features, stakeholder engagement and logistics
BoE launches banknote security app
Bank of England launches an interactive application for use on mobile devices that helps the public identify security features on its banknotes
Kazakhstan aims for hat-trick in banknote beauty parade
The International Bank Note Society judges newly issued banknotes on aesthetic and security grounds; Solomon Islands among those aiming to wrest crown from the Kazakhs
Banque de France's Christian Noyer on bank runs, the euro crisis and a Fed-like ECB
Christian Noyer explains how he has restructured the Banque de France to enable it to become the Eurosystem’s ‘New York Fed’, while facing down a bank run and tackling the euro crisis