The Central Bank of Azerbaijan has announced that it will soon be circulating a new high value 200 manat denomination banknote, following the country’s economic growth. Azerbaijan’s current high value circulating banknote is the 100 manat note, valued at around US $59. However, following a decade of growth, the Central Bank decided that its current currency structure needed to…
The International Currency Association (ICA) has appointed Wolfram Seidemann of Giesecke&Devrient Currency Technology as its new Chairman. The previous Chairman, Barna Barabas of JURA, stepped down from the position but remains a Board member. The ICA, founded in 2016, states it is “a voice for cash, promoting its continuing role as part of diverse, open and…
The Central Bank of Venezuela has confirmed that a new International Organization for Standardization (ISO) code will be assigned to its soon to be denominated currency. The ISO code “VES” will be used to identify the new Sovereign Bolivar that comes into effect on 04 June 2018, replacing the previous ISO code of “VEF”.. The Venezuelan currency is to…
De La Rue (DLR) has opened its new product authentication facility in Malta, which will produce tax stamps, authentication and brand products including protection labels for Microsoft. According to DLR, the facility, which was opened today by the Prime Minister of Malta on 24 April 2018, is a centre of excellence across Currency, Identity and Brand…
The Bank of England has launched a new Banknote Checking Scheme to reduce the number of counterfeit banknotes being accepted by businesses. The Scheme, launched by the Bank of England on the 10 October, is aimed at cash-handling businesses and, it says, promotes the checking of banknotes at the point of sale (POS) through targeted training. By…
The UAE opened its first banknote printing plant, the Oumolat Security Printing LLC, on Saturday 11 March 2017 by Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Vice President and Ruler of Dubai. The new UAE banknote printing plant is located in the Khalifa Industrial Zone in Abu Dhabi and aims to provide printing services for central banks across the Middle East. Historically,…
A surprise announcement was made last night by India’s Prime Minister who advised that the 1,000 and 500 rupee banknotes have been scrapped. The move is part of a crackdown on corruption and illegal cash holdings. During his address, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that “Black money and corruption are the biggest obstacles in eradicating…
Somalia is working with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to reform its national currency, with the aim of restoring the credibility of the Somali shilling by issuing a new SOS 1,000 banknote. A report produced by the IMF highlights the problems found within the African country, where 95 percent of the currency in circulation is the US…
Sveriges Riksbank, the Central Bank of Sweden, has served a notice to the Swedish parliament calling for access to cash to be a legal right. The notice, which was submitted to the country’s Ministry of Finance on the 16 March 2016, asks for the nation’s banks to provide a cash service to ensure access to accounts…
According to online news sources, Zimbabwe has announced that it will make the Chinese yuan legal tender following confirmation that China would cancel $40 million in debts. During a statement by the country’s minister Patrick Chinamasa regarding the debt cancellation, it was advised that Zimbabwe would start using the Chinese yuan as it seeks to increase trade…