New €50 banknote (source: SITA)
A new banknote with the value of €50 was officially put into circulation in Slovakia and the whole eurozone on April 4.
It is already the fourth type of banknotes from the new series. Its design was first introduced nine months ago, the TASR newswire reported.
The €50 banknote is the most used note in circulation, comprising 41 percent of the total number of banknotes and 45 percent of their value in the eurozone, said representatives of the National Bank of Slovakia (NBS), the country’s central bank.
It is also the most forged banknote in the eurozone. As a result, the new series contains many security features with which forgers will have serious problems, said Peter Jarábek, expert in preparation and protection of money, as reported by TASR.
For example, there is a series of short raised lines on the left and right edges on the front. They make it easy to identify the banknote, especially for visually impaired people. The main image, the lettering and the large value numeral also feel thicker. The banknote also contains a window near the top of the hologram which becomes transparent and reveals a portrait of Europa on both sides of the note.
In addition, it has a different portrait watermark, while the shiny number in the bottom left corner has the effect of light that moves up and down. The number also changes colour from emerald green to deep blue.
Altogether 5.4 billion banknotes have been issued in nine European printers of securities. In Slovakia, it was necessary to adapt 24,590 machines, devices and controlling machines for the new series, TASR reported.
NBS says that the €50 banknotes from older series will still remain in circulation, so it is not necessary to exchange them.
The first euro banknotes were put into circulation in 12 eurozone countries on January 1, 2002. Currently, more than 338 million people in 19 countries pay with the euro banknotes, while the value of the money in circulation amounts to more than €1,111 billion, said Andrej Slížik of NBS.
In the future, the European Central Bank also plans to introduce new banknotes with the value of €100 and €200, but the date of their launch has not been set yet. The €500 banknote will not be part of the new series, TASR reported.
