Thumbnail image of the South Africa Mandela 100 banknote.

South Africa celebrates Mandela’s birth centenary

South Africa will soon be celebrating Nelson Mandela’s birth centenary with the launch of a commemorative set of banknotes and a new five rand circulation coin. According to the South African Reserve (SARB), the country’s Central Bank, the commemorative banknotes will be launched this year in denominations of R10, R20, R50, R100 and R200. Though they…

Image of ink rollers from a banknote printing machine.

Sun Chemical acquires Luminescence

Luminescence, a manufacturer of security inks used in banknotes and other high security documents, has been acquired by Sun Chemical and its parent company DIC Corporation. UK based Luminescence has been a supplier of security inks for thirty one years, providing inks used for currency tax stamps, passports, ID cards, secure documents and brand protection.…

Thumbnail image of Czech 100 banknote.

Czech National Bank to issue new 100 and 200 banknotes

The Czech National Bank has announced that it will issue upgraded CZK 100 and 200 banknotes, to be circulated during 2018. A press release published by the Czech Central Bank advises that whilst the new banknotes will continue to use the same illustrative design, they will include modern security features that provide the banknotes with advanced protection against…

Europa euro currency portrait.

Euro Counterfeits remain low during 2017

The European Central Bank has released its banknote counterfeiting figures for the second half of 2017, showing a slight increase compared to the previous period yet still remain low. A total of 363,000 counterfeit notes were withdrawn during the second half of 2017, an increase of 9.7% compared with the first half of the year.…

Thumbnail image of the upgraded 1000 Uruguay banknote

Uruguay upgrades 100 and 1,000 peso banknotes

The Central Bank of Uruguay has issued the Series G 100-peso and Series E 1,000-peso banknotes, now circulating within the country. The upgraded Uruguay banknotes have a similar design as their predecessors and continue to be printed on cotton paper substrate but contain upgraded security features including optically variable ink, used to depict a map…

Thumbnail image of new Sao Tome and Principe banknotes.

Sao Tome and Principe issue new currency series

The Banco Central de São Tomé e Príncipe has celebrated its 25th anniversary by launching a new series of banknotes and coins. The new currency is part of the Bank’s Monetary Reform 2018, resulting in the removal of three zeros from the denomination structure of the current series first circulated in 1997. There will be six banknote denominations…

Thumbnail image of the Botswana 10 pula banknote.

Botswana unveils Safeguard® polymer 10 pula banknote

The Bank of Botswana has unveiled their upgraded 10 pula banknote which will enter circulation on 1 February 2018, printed on De La Rue’s Safeguard® polymer substrate. Following an announcement from the Central Bank made last November, the Bank of Botswana has today unveiled the upgraded 10 pula banknote. According to local reports, complaints were made by…

Thumbnail image of the 2018 50 ouguiya banknote.

Mauritania issues new ouguiya currency banknotes

The Central Bank of Mauritania has issued its new ouguiya currency, consisting of newly denominated banknotes that have dropped a zero from its value. The new polymer banknotes began circulating in Mauritania yesterday, on the 1 January 2018. The launch of the new currency follows an announcement made last November by President Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz, who reportedly advised of the…

Thumbnail image of the new Tunisia 20 dinar banknote.

Tunisia issues new 20 dinar banknote

The Central Bank of Tunisia has issued a new 20 dinar banknote, containing a variety of modern anti-counterfeit security features. The new banknote was reportedly first issued on the 21 December 2017. The design of the banknote continues to use a predominantly red colour scheme and has dimensions of 153mm by 76mm as seen in its predecessor issued in 2011,…

Thumbnail image of the new Malaysia commemorative banknote 2017

Malaysia issues 60th anniversary banknotes

Bank Negara Malaysia has announced it will be issuing commemorative banknotes next year in conjunction with the 60th anniversary of the Signing of the Federation of Malaya Independence Agreement. A press release issued by the Central Bank of Malaysia has confirmed that the new commemorative banknotes will be available for public viewing from 21 December 2017, with orders…