The National Bank of Tajikistan has introduced new versions of its 10-, 20-, 50-, 200- and 500-somoni notes.
The updated notes look like the previous issues, but have a few differences: a new latent image on shield, a repositioned registration device, a new holographic stripe without laser-etched digits, a new color-changing windowed security thread and a smaller repositioned flag at the back upper right.
The Central Bank of the Islamic Republic of Iran has made the design of the new 500,000-rial note public, according to the Iran Front Page. The new note has a few changes comapred to the one issued in 2014: its main color is now orange, the vignettes on the front have been repositioned and on the back we can see Mount Damavand.
One striking element of this note, is the 50 on the front. This might be an clue that Iran might lop off 4 zeroes of its banknotes. "The government had announced in 2016 it is planning to cut four zeroes off the currency, in an effort to keep up with rampant inflation that has hit the Iranian economy for decades."
From all of us at stevenbron.nl (so, just me 
): best wishes for 2019 and happy collecting! As the first post of this new year I would like to take a look back at 2018 and mention my favorite banknote of last year and my nomination for the Banknote of the Year award: the Swiss 200-francs note.
The Central Bank of Armenia has issued the last three notes of its new series on 25 December 2018. These are the 1,000-, 2,000- and 5,000-dram notes featuring portraits of Paruyr Sevak, Tigran Petrosyan and William Saroyan.
With these notes the new series has been completely issued.
In October 2018 the Central Bank of Sudan announced that the printing process for new banknotes of 100-, 200- and 500-pounds had begun and we might see the new notes before the end of the year.
That date has now shifted to next year it seems. The 100- and 200-pound notes will be issued in January 2019 and the 500-pound note will be issued in February of 2019, according to alnilin.com.
Update 19-01-2019: here's what the new 100-pounds will look like:
The People's Bank of China will issue a commemorative banknote of 50 yuan today. The note commemorates the 70th anniversary of the issuance of the renminbi (RMB), China's national currency.
The front of the note shows the tree ring and the first to fifth sets of representative parts of the RMB. At the top left is the national emblem pattern, the name of the "People's Bank of China", and the words "The 70th Anniversary of RMB Issuance" and "1948-2018".
The back of the note shows the People's Bank of China Building, supplemented by Peony, the former site of the People's Bank of China, the first set of RMB distribution notices and the silhouette of the city building. In the upper left corner of the ticket is the denomination number "50", the Chinese Pinyin alphabet of the People's Bank of China and the words and denominations of the "People's Bank of China" in the four national languages of Mongolia, Tibet, Victoria and Zhuang.
The National Bank of Kyrgyzstan is updating its current banknotes with new security features and design elements. On 20 December 2018 they introduced updated versions of their 20- and 5,000-som banknotes.
With these two notes, the complete series has been updated.
The National Bank of Argentina has issued the last banknote of the Flora and Fauna series. This violet 100-pesos note was issued on 19 December 2018 and features an image of the taruca on the front and as its watermark. The back shows the Northwest region of Argentina where the animal lives.
With this note the Flora and Fauna series is now complete.
We've come to the U-series already from fantasy banknote creator Mujand. This time we visit the islands of Evshlohogi in the Blissdane Naive universe (other lands and stories can be found here). There are four banknotes in this series, with the Queen and three princesses on the front and part of a partial image on the back... When you combine the four backsides you get a cool larger image of the complete Staal holding up Blissdane Naive (as seen below).
But that's not the only nice thing about the notes, oh no... On some of the notes you can find a hidden secret... I've promised not to reveal where or what it is but it really ties the notes and story of the Evshlohogi Islands together.
If you're from the Netherlands you may also find another 'secret' on the 5-dubre note. Doesn't the Queen look rather familiar...?
Again lots of hidden gems and secrets to be found on this new series from the ever entertaining and surprising Mujand. This and other series can be bought directly from the source.
Disclaimer: these notes were sent for review purposes. The text is entirely mine and was not paid for or asked for in any way.
The Bank of Mauritius has issued an improved version of its 2,000-rupees note, according to printer De la Rue, on 6 December 2018. "The note is a reproduction of the current design: retaining most of the paper security features, whilst introducing some upgraded security features. These enhanced features include De La Rue’s Mask™ feature and newly launched Illuminate design technique for polymer. (...)
A first in polymer design, Illuminate uses a combination of inks, including matte and iridescent inks, to inject vivid colour into the polymer window. Designs are no longer limited by the muted colours of previous generations of polymer. Illuminate offers unlimited possibilities in window design, through the creation of vibrant, standout artwork which drives strong end user recognition and public authentication. (...)
This is the 35th banknote to be issued on De La Rue’s polymer substrate, Safeguard®, which was originally launched in 2012."
The Bulgarian National Bank has announced it will introduce an updated deign of its 100-lev banknote. This banknote is the first of a new series. The basic design of the new series is pretty much the same as the existing banknotes but the security features have been updated.
The updated banknote will be available from 28 December 2018.
(The text below is copied from the IBNS website and the 36-page PDF is highly recommended, also for more experienced collectors)
Are you interested in finding out more about banknotes and banknote collecting?
Do you know
Have you thought about starting a banknote collection but want some information about
Members of the International Bank Note Society (IBNS) with many years of experience of banknotes and banknote collecting have produced
Aimed at beginners, it includes answers to those questions as well as the definition of a banknote, its various features and how banknotes are manufactured, as well as an outline of aspects to be considered when building a collection of banknotes including information on how to grade a banknote.
If you want to take your interest in Banknotes even further, why not consider joining the International Bank Note Society?
Membership of the IBNS has numerous benefits which include:
To gain the most from an interest in banknotes, membership of the IBNS is recommended. Membership of the IBNS costs $36.00 USD (£28.00 GBP or $48.00 AUD) per year.
To become a member please complete an
application form - https://www.theibns.org/join
The Banque d'Algérie has already printed the new 500- and 1,000-dinars banknotes and they might be issued before the end of this year.
The 500-dinars will have as its main motif Science and Technology and show the technological advancement of Algeria over the years. The 1,000-dinars note has National Traditions and Customs as its motif and will have the Great Mosque of Algiers as an image. The Great Mosque is being built right now and will be the largest in Africa, with the world’s tallest minaret at 265m. The new notes will probably be printed on a better (perhaps hybrid) substrate and will have advanced security features.
Update 26-01-2019: rumour has it that the new banknotes have been postponed until the Great Mosque of Algiers is inaugurated. So that's until.....???
The Central Bank of Egypt has announced its intention to start issuing polymer banknotes from 2020. The first polymer banknote will be a 10-pounds note, according to gdnonline.com.
In a statement to state-run Middle East News Agency (MENA), CBE Governor Tarek Amer said that the polymer banknotes would be more durable than paper ones.
"Polymer banknotes are already being used in major economies," he said, adding that the initiative would benefit Egypt’s currency market, slash printing costs and enhance the quality of banknotes.
He said banks would start issuing the polymer banknotes, with a denomination of 10 pounds, at its printing headquarters in the new administrative capital.
According to Buyemen.com the Central Bank of Yemen wil issue a new 100-ritals note early 2019. The new notes are printed in Russia. The Central Bank also announced that it is considering issuing a coin to replace the 50 riyals banknotes.
A first glance of the new banknote:
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