Former Prime Minister of Norway and NATO General Secretary Jens Stoltenberg has been appointed for a six-year term as Governor of Norges Bank, replacing Øystein Olsen who is retiring. He won’t take up the position until later in the year, when his term at NATO expires. Deputy Governor Ida Wolden Bache will act as Interim Governor in the meantime.

The Reserve Bank of Malawi has issued a new high denomination 5,000 kwacha banknote, to relieve pressure on the 2,000 kwacha, which accounts for 80% of currency in circulation. An upgraded version of the 2,000 will also be issued shortly.

As part of its modernisation programme, Security Printing and Minting Corporation of India Limited (SPMCIL) has commissioned new banknote printing lines at both of its printworks - Currency Note Press, Nashik and Bank Note Press, Dewas.

There are many functional and secure features available that meet the needs of the various cash cycles, banknote issuing authorities and end users. One such feature is the taggant, which overcomes the challenges of the degradation of visible security features in that it continues to perform even when the note is subject to extensive wear and tear.

When a central bank is designing a new series or upgrading the security of the existing designs how can it be certain that the security features selected will be resilient against counterfeiting? How do they choose from the many features and technologies on offer?

Banknote durability is an ongoing topic of interest for central banks. More durable banknotes have a reduced impact on the environment and save the central bank money because they need replacing less often.

The Bank of Guyana has announced that it will shortly be issuing a new $2,000 banknote on polymer to commemorate the 55th Anniversary of Independence.

In October 2021, the Central Bank of the Bahamas (CBB) released its new $100 banknote, completing the roll-out of its CRISP (Counterfeit Resistant Integrated Security Product) Evolution series which it began back in 2016.

Banknote authentication and security software provider Spectra Systems Corporation has announced three new contract awards, generating $700,000 of additional unforecasted revenue for the 2022 calendar year.

Russian state printer and mint Goznak has launched its own banknote counting and sorting machine – the BARS-S5. This follows the acquisition last year of BIS (which stands for Bank Innovation Systems), with whom the new machine was co-developed. The first order has already been received from the Central Bank of Russia.

Flights have been booked, hotel reservations have been made and final preparations are being made so that, after two years apart, Currency Research can bring the majority of the industry back together for some long-overdue discussions, professional networking, and a lively exchange of information and views.

Ton Roos, who was appointed Director, Banknotes at the European Central Bank (ECB) in 2008, retired on 31 January. Currency News™ spoke to him about the challenges and achievements of his career in the ECB.

De La Rue has announced a trading update on the financial year ending March 2022, as well as an update of progress on its Turnaround Plan, which unsurprisingly has been impacted by the pandemic.

The team behind the multi-award winning cash cycle analytics platform DLR Analytics™ have announced a major upgrade to the existing software.

The Bank of Albania has put into circulation new versions of the 500 lekë and 2,000 lekë, thereby completing its new series which also includes 200, 1,000, 5,000 and 10,000 lekë.

As part of our series of articles around the world to assess the growing trend to digital payments and what these countries are doing to ensure ongoing access to cash in a less-cash world, this month it’s the turn of New Zealand.

Giesecke+Devrient (G+D) and Papierfabrik Louisenthal have been working on reducing the environmental impact of their banknote production and cash cycle related activities for many years.

On 1 January 1999, 11 EU countries fixed their exchange rates, adopted a shared monetary policy under the European Central Bank, and launched their new common currency. The euro was born as an electronic currency.

At the European Cash Cycle last autumn, the presentation by Josef Vrana, Senior Banknote Issuance Expert, Directorate Banknotes for the European Central Bank (ECB), covered euro cash trends and the effect of COVID-19 to date.

The International Banknote Designers Association (IBDA) has finalised the agenda for the 6th International Banknote Designers Conference that will take place in Dubrovnik, Croatia from 24-27 October 2022.