See Video On How Canada's New Plastic Money Bills Are Made

Plastic Money Coming To Canada in 2012

Plastic Worthy Of NOTE

The old days of gangsters and petty criminals counterfeiting money are  all but gone. Canada will be following Australia and many other countries by introducing polymer bills next year in an effort to increase note longevity and to curb the criminal element practice of counterfeiting which costs billions each year.

Soon your bank notes will be able to survive an accidental dunking in a swimming pool without becoming damaged or waterlogged thanks to a new polymer material which the Bank of Canada has embraced.

Normally, under average circulation wear and tear, a cotton/paper bank note will last about one year. The new plastic bank notes will endure the effects of Canadian spending frequency by 2.5 times that of the paper notes. The extra cost of the polymer notes are expected to pay for themselves in short order.

Read more about the security features of our new bank notes below. Watch the video from the bank of Canada and also view the video from Australia (at the bottom of this article) where much of the production and printing technology was engineered.

BELOW: View the Australian video on Making Plastic Money

Look at the innovative security features and design of the new $100 polymer note

Feel. Look. Flip.

The new $100 and $50 polymer notes are easy to check and hard to counterfeit. They have the same innovative security features that can be seen in transparent areas on both sides of the notes.

Feel

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  1. Raised ink

  Feel the raised ink on the shoulders of the large portrait, the large number, and the words “Bank of Canada” and “Banque du Canada.”

Look

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  2. Large window

  Look for transparency through the large window containing a metallic portrait and building.

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  3. Metallic portrait

  Look at the details in the metallic portrait in the large window. It matches the large portrait.

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  4. Metallic building

  Look at the details in the metallic building in the large window. Tilt the note to see sharp colour changes in the building.

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  5. Small numbers

  Look at the numbers in and around the large window that match the value of the note. Some of the numbers appear in reverse.

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  6. Transparent text

  Look at the word “Canada.” It is transparent and feels slightly raised.

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  7. Maple leaf border

  Look at the maple leaves that border the large window. Some of the leaves cross into the window.

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  8. Frosted maple leaf window

  Look at the frosted maple leaf window to see that it has a transparent outline.

Flip

Flip the note to see the features in the large window repeated in the same colours and detail on the other side.

Added Security

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  9. Hidden numbers

  The hidden numbers are a security feature that you can use to further verify your note, with the aid of a single-point light source.

Hidden Numbers

This feature allows you to verify a bank note using many commonly available single-point light sources, such as pot lights and household (incandescent) light bulbs. No light source should be pointed directly at the eye at close range, and dangerous sources of light, such as the sun, laser lights and many LEDs, should never be used to view the feature.

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  Place the frosted maple leaf window close to your eye.

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  Look through the frosted maple leaf window at a single-point light source.

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  See a circle of numbers matching the note’s value appear through the frosted maple leaf window.