The Future of Currency
What nobody in their anticipation realised that the new £10 Note had both shrunk in size. It had come nearer in dimension to the Old One Pound “O’Brien Note of the 1980’s.
( September 16, 2017, London, Sri Lanka Guardian) Cash has always been king in people’s pockets for centuries. Today the world is awash with paper currency. Major Central Banks are pumping hundreds of millions, if not trillions in currency notes. The Yen10, 000 Japan Note (approx £73) accounts for roughly 90% of all currency transactions. The European Central Bank (ECB) announced it would phase out the Euro 500 Note nicknamed the “Bin Laden” because of its association with money laundering and terror financing. Illegal money flows now exceed $2 trillion (£1.4 trillion) a year.
Banks everywhere encourage the growth of debit and credit cards, with apps for electronic transfers and mobile payments, as more and more people are using plastic to pay for everything. Physical cash transactions are becoming rarer. Many have given up carrying money around completely.
But there are also advantages using cash. What you see is what you pay for. But when you go on holiday they all buy and carry foreign currency. Many say it is just more fun than plastic when you are out and about in a foreign land.
Bucking the trend Britain issued the first polymer £10 Note
More than 1 million of new plastic (polymer) £10 Notes were put into circulation on Thursday 14 September 2017 by the Bank of England, celebrating author of Pride and Prejudice, Jane Austen, on the back of the note, some 200 years after her death.
Londoners queued outside the Bank of England on release of the new note. They were
along with many foreigners who wanted to lay their hands on the new note, perhaps, as “Collector’s item,” as the first polymer “Tenner” in circulation.
Others wanted the new £10 note in honour of Jane Austen and her enduring contribution to English Literature.
Most people waited for hours outside the Bank of England in Threadneedle Street in the City for one sole purpose, to make a fast buck. They were hoping to be able to grab and be the first lucky few to obtain the new note in circulation containing the serial numbers prefixed with JA 01, as they are Jane Austen’s initials. Others hoped they would get the low serial number AA 01 to trade on eBay. One specialist paper currency dealer had circulated information in advance that the lucky person/s with the “luck of the Irish” to obtain any notes with Serial Numbers starting with AA01 000010 onwards could command a guide price of £2000 to £3000. In fact sellers were taking bids on eBay for what they promised were low serial numbers. The lower the number, the more valuable the banknote. It was no longer currency, it was gambling. Strangely, there were no “Bobbies” outside the Bank.
The Tenner has shrunk in size and value
What nobody in their anticipation realised that the new £10 Note had both shrunk in size. It had come nearer in dimension to the Old One Pound “O’Brien Note of the 1980’s.
It has also lost its purchasing power and is nearer the 1980’s Pound in value.
There is always more to it that meet the eye. Making currency notes from polymer film means that the new £10 Note is more durable. It is expected to last as much as 5 years instead of the 2 years when paper notes last during circulation. Besides, it is so hard to forge as it contains at least 10 advanced security features, according to the Bank of England leaflet.
For those who want to see and feel the difference between the Old £10 and the New Note, the BoE leaflet summarises as follows:
- There is a see-through window on the note. A clearly defined portrait of the Queen printed on the window with the words ‘£10 bank of England’ printed twice, around the edge.
- There is the image of Winchester Cathedral positioned over the see through window. The foil is gold on the front and silver on the back of the note. When the note is tilted, a multi-coloured rainbow effect can be seen, The foil “£” symbol in the window is silver on the front and copper on the back of the note.
- The side of the window is a coloured quill, to signify Jane Austen renown as an author. It changes colour from purple to orange depending on the angle the note is held.
- On the front of the note, below the see through window, is a silver foil patch hologram. When the note is tilted, the word “Ten” changes to “Pounds” and a multicoloured rainbow effect can be seen.
- There in front of the note is a silver foil patch containing an image of the Coronation Crown
Which appears in 3D.When the note is tilted, a multi-coloured rainbow effect can be noticed.
- On the back of the note, there is a book-shaped copper foil patch, which contains the letters “JA”. It is immediately behind the silver crown in the front.
- As you check the polymer note and the raised print and by running your finger across the front of the note, the words “Bank of England” and in the bottom corner, the number “!0” are printed in raised ink, known as intaglio, to assist the blind and the partially sighted.
- The print quality on the note is sharp, clear and free from smudges or blurred edges.
- Using a magnifying glass when you look at the lettering beneath the Queen’s portrait in the front, in small lettering is seen the value of the note and number “10”.
- When you check the ultra-violet feature at the front of the note, the number “10” appears in bright red and green, on a dull background in contrast.
Surely the BoE and its Canadian Governor, Mark Carney should take credit for the above jargon, which no Englishman in his right mind will have the time to read, let alone assess the quality, print, texture of the New Note.
With all the above security features on a “Tenner” which is worth roughly a “Pound” in today’s value, is it highly unlikely a money launderer will tamper with this note.
Disadvantages of the New £10 Note
Whilst appreciating the time, the effort, the costs of the above security measures on the New Tenner, it is anybody’s guess whether this polymer note will soon have to be replaced with a Ten Pound Coin instead.
Further, if at any stage the New Note is folded, unlike the Charles Darwinian £10 paper notes, the crease remains and is difficult in counting large volumes of currency notes. But who now worries about counting cash. The Chinese Counting Machines installed in most banks do all the machine counting these days.
There is another issue with polymer notes, which only can be noticed in England. More than 130,000 people have signed a petition online last year calling on the Bank of England to stop using animal fat in the production of polymer notes. We are informed that this poses a problem, it would compromise anti-counterfeit measures.
Most critics say although we got rid of plastic bags, we now are bringing in plastic money, which is a sensitive issue.
How long is the Old Charles Darwinian £10 Note legal tender?
BoE states for a limited period until spring 2018, both the New and the Old Ten Pound Notes will be in circulation. No exact date as yet has been set when it would be withdrawn.
Unlike in many countries “withdrawn notes” will retain their nominal value “for all time.”It can always be exchanged for a limited period at any Bank or later at the Bank of England.
British bank Notes
Most British currency notes have featured portraits of personalities like Adam Smith, Boulton, Watt and recently on the new polymer £5 Note, Winston Churchill.
Jane Austen will be one of two women on the English Bank note. Elizabeth Fry was the only other woman and of course H.M. Queen Elizabeth.
British bank notes are in circulation around the world and they maintain their recognition.
Governments and printing currency
Cash remains important not only for the public but for governments to facilitate small everyday transactions and for protecting privacy. In his book, “The Curse of Cash,” Kenneth Rogoff, Professor of Economics, Harvard University, offers a plan that involves a gradual phasing out of larger notes, while leaving small notes ($10 and below) in circulation for an indefinite period.
Scaling back paper money is the name of the game of the Banks around the world. But societies seem to need tangible money, as money is reckoned as a foundation of security.
People seem to have a need to feel currency with their hands. Who can complain?
