Cornish bank notes issued by a notorious businessman known as the "Smugglers' Banker" are to go on display in Polperro after being sold at auction in London.(...)The lower denomination note, which went under the hammer at Spinks' sale-room in Russell Square, is signed by Zephaniah Job and dated 1818. Job, who was born in St Agnes and moved to Polperro in the 1770s, was an astute and wealthy entrepreneur. He helped his adopted community in a number of ways, including building its first school, but behind the veil of respectability lay a scheming free-trader. It was for this reason he earned the nickname of the "Smugglers' Banker".
While checking all the sites of Central Banksyesterday, I stumbled on a truly horrific spectacle. On the website of the Central Bank of Paraguay, they show a video of banknotes being destroyed... These are old and dirty notes of course but still: the heart of a collector skips a beat. If you still want to watch this monstrosity, you can tune in from Monday to Friday between 11:00-13:00 local time. Be warned!
My list of central banks in the world which I copied from the IBNS website, has been completely checked and updated with new and current websites. About 25 websites had changed their address. I'm still looking (or waiting?) for the website of the Central Bank of South Sudan.
The Bank of Israel has announced new banknotes. In the second half of 2013 the first two new banknotes will be issued: 50 NIS and 200 NIS (NIS = New Israeli Shekel). Two other notes of 20 NIS and 100 NIS will be released in the beginning of 2014. The following list shows the new design features and links to additional information on the people who's portraits are used:
Azerbaijan is planning to issue new and larger denominations into the country. Right now they have banknotes of 1, 5, 10, 20, 50 and 100 manat but notes of 200 and 500 manat have now been announced by the Central Bank of Azerbaijan. You can find more info on this website.
The Telegraph has a funny study on banknotes today. Researchers looked at how people spend money, particularly when they pay with either old filthy banknotes or with nice new crisp notes. You can already guess the conclusion: people tend to spend 'filthy money' faster than new banknotes.
Even though it's just money we value it more when it's nice and clean because it makes us feel proud to have it - especially if we're in a social setting where other people might see the bills, the researchers said. This could mean that asking a bank cashier for newer notes could in fact help curb spending, they said.
Of course, collectors already knew that nice uncirculated banknotes have far greater value.
I finally added some notes to my collection from one of my favourite series: the Suriname year 2000 series. What I specifically like about this series is the beautiful design with the vibrant colors, the flowers and the birds. Everything you would expect from a banknote issued by a tropical country! I hope to add the rest of this set in the future.
You can find the 5, 10, 25 and 100 Gulden notes (P146-149) right here.
Yesterday I wrote about disappointing results for the parent company of Landqart Paper but they are not the only banknote printer who has worried investors with their results. De la Rue, the worlds biggest commercial printer of banknotes, has also published disappointing figures. In response its shares dropped 7%.
De la Rue commented on the figures by pointing out that orders have been delayed and can't be added to this fiscal year. They won't tell which orders, but a persistent rumour says De la Rue has secretly been printing Greek drachma banknotes which could be issued right away in case Greece is forced to leave the euro.
De la Rue is the world's largest commercial banknote printer and responsible for 150 currencies. That means 1 in 5 of every type of banknote being used in the world right now, is printed by De la Rue. Other printers can be found here.
The IBNS Netherlands will hold its annual fair on the 8th of December this year. Admission is free for members and €2 for non-members. After the fair the annual meeting will take place at which time a new board will be elected.
There are rumours Swiss banknote printer Landqart could be hived off by its Canada based parent company Fortress Paper. It would then be seperately listed at the London Stock Exchange. These rumours arose due to disappointing results by Fortress: it's banknote printing business lost C$8,9 million in the third quarter (about € 7 million). Fortress CEO Chad Wasilenkoff hinted at radical plans to combat the bad results.
Landqart is one of many banknote printers in the world. To get more information on banknote printers, check this list I have.
The new South African banknotes with Nelson Mandela continue to make the news. This time in the form of the painting below. Is it a representation of the coming zombiecalypse? According to artist Ayanda Mabulu his version of the new banknotes is a way to show how the gap between the rich and the poor of South Africa has widened.
I like the art of banknotes, but I'm not too sure about this one... I prefer the original version!
More info has come available on the new "Europa" series of euro banknotes which I wrote about yesterday. We already know the new €5 will be released first and then the €10 etc. The new note will be presented in full on 10 January 2013 and will be issued in May 2013.
So what's new? A number of security features have been updated and some of the design will be changed though that's still a little bit shrouded in mystery. The artist chosen for the updated design is Reinhold Gerstetter, an independant banknote designer from Berlin. He is best known for his work on the last series of German Marks (example of his 200 Mark, P47) and on the last series of Spanish Pesetas.
1. The first new feature is the incorporation of the image of the mythological figure of Europa. She will first be visible as a hologram in the silver stripe on the banknote. Next to the hologram is an image of a window and the value of the note:
2. The second novelty is the same image of Europa in the watermark:
3. Last new item: the number 5 will be in emerald green and will shift color when you tilt the banknote.
The European Central Bank is Thursday to present a plan for replacing current euro notes with safer ones from 2013, Hessischer Rundfunk reported Sunday. The second generation euro notes will still have values from five to €500, but motifs will change and improved security features will make forgery more difficult.
Hopefully this means that the new banknotes will also be less boring.
If there's more news today, this article will be updated.
Update:
ECB President Mario Draghi has indeed announced that the new series of euro banknotes will be released next year. This second series of the euro has been named the "Europa" series. It will include a portrait of the mythological figure Europa in the watermark and hologram. The new banknotes will be gradually introduced starting with the 5 euro note in May 2013. Apart from the watermark and hologram an emerald number and other modern security features will be incorporated in the new design.
The Europa series will have the same denominations as its predecessor: €5, €10, €20, €50, €100, €200 and €500, and they will be introduced in ascending order. They will circulate alongside the first series of euro notes but these will gradually be withdrawn and cease to be legal tender. The final design of the 5 euro banknote will be unveiled on 10 January 2013.
Today Barack Obama was re-elected as president of the United States but their neighbours to the north also have cause for celebration. Because today the new 20 Dollar banknote is released to the general public in Canada.
Recent articles on this beautiful new note can be found here and here.
Hello, I'm Steven Bron and welcome to my blog on banknotes! Here you can find: breaking news, background articles and of course my personal collection (world notes or at least one from each country, commemorative notes and polymer notes).
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