‘House Notes: Art, Design and Security in One’, the third issue of a special report from Currency News™ summarising the latest house notes, is now available to download and read.

Two of the workshops at the forthcoming Banknote Conference (11-14 May) are open to all delegates. They are running concurrently, however, so delegates will have to choose between one or the other.

In an era where illicit trade has migrated from back alleys to encrypted chats and global marketplaces, safeguarding national currency requires more than just physical security features.

Climate action is embedded in G+D Louisenthal’s environmental strategy, with enhanced transparency in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from operations and upstream and downstream value chains.

As part of his satirical take on wealth and power, Mark Twain reputedly coined the idiom, ‘Money Talks’. But, he asked, if it does, do we know what it’s saying?’ To which I would add, ‘… and in what language?’

Following the introduction of the ZiG in April 2024 and public concerns on the quality of the then family of ZiG notes in circulation, the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) undertook an evaluation to ensure that ZiG banknotes and coins remain relevant and supportive of economic activity.

As noted in last month’s Currency News, in the announcement of its record results for last year, Giesecke+Devrient reference TwinColors® as one of its latest currency innovations. So, what is it?

The Banknote Ethics Initiative (BnEI) has launched the BnEI 2.0 Audit Standard, which it terms a significant advancement in the organisation’s commitment to promoting ethical practices and compliance across the global banknote industry. All BnEI members will now be audited and accredited under the newly developed BnEI 2.0 framework.

ATMIA (the ATM Industry Association) has concluded a merger with ePayResources, a membership-based organisation for financial institutions and businesses focused on payments and a provider of payments education and compliance expertise in the US.

Halton Regional Police Service, located in the province of Ontario, say they have dismantled an online operation that was selling counterfeit cash across Canada, leading to several arrests and nearly two dozen criminal charges.

There is just over a month remaining until the next iteration of the High Security Printing (HSP) conferences, with HSP Latin America scheduled to take place 1-3 June in Guatemala City, Guatemala.

Royal Dutch Kusters Engineering has published its 2025 Banknote Recycling Study. Kusters is one of the banknote industry’s leading manufacturers of high security off-line destruction and shred handling equipment for banknotes and coins; the paper explores how central banks are handling the disposal of unfit notes in particular, and also some of their general sustainability activities, based on an extensive market survey.

It was three years ago this month that war broke out in Sudan. As has been previously, and frequently, reported in Currency News™, cash is the first and last resort in war-torn countries, as well as those affected by natural disasters. It is a matter of priority therefore, for the supply and distribution of currency to be maintained even in the most challenging of circumstances.

The Central Bank of Curaçao and Sint Maarten’s new 200 Caribbean guilder has won the International Bank Note Society’s (IBNS) Bank Note of the Year Award for 2025.

Reconnaissance International, co-publishers of Currency News, have launched DataVault 2.0, which has been comprehensively overhauled with a wealth of new information and an intuitive interface, and is now offered with a range of flexible subscription options to suit all budgets and research needs.

De La Rue held two workshops, at HSP Asia in Kuala Lumpur last December and HSP EMEA in Rabat this February respectively, on the topic of making informed currency choices. Central to making such choices is the company’s DLR Analytics platform, as described here.

Giesecke+Devrient (G+D)’s 2025 results detail its strong order intake for the year, a record at €3.6 billion, highlighting its strong growth prospects in providing SecurityTech for mission critical infrastructure.

35 years ago, in 1991, Papua New Guinea (PNG) introduced its first polymer banknote – the 2 kina. This made it the first country after Australia to adopt the then new technology, and helped begin a period of change in currency across the Pacific region.

Orell Füssli has just released its 2025 annual report, which shows revenue up by 8% to CHF 272.8 million, operating profit up by 17.7% to CHF 41.3 million and net profit up by 31% to CHF 23 million.

In the evolving landscape of currency design, the boundary between scientific innovation and artistic expression is becoming increasingly blurred. Central banks have long sought features that are not only impossible to replicate but also intuitive for the public to verify.