The Central Bank Unveils its New CE $50 Banknote
Published: Wednesday October 2nd, 2019
The Central Bank of The Bahamas unveiled its new $50 banknote on October 2, 2019. This banknote, which is the sixth installment in the CRISP Evolution family, promotes industry-first technology by using a series of world-class products never before integrated on a banknote-anywhere else in the world.
In 2013, the Central Bank partnered with Orell Fussli, a specialty security printing company in Switzerland, to modernize the look of its banknotes. The results of those collaborations represent the new CRISP Evolution banknote designs that the Bahamian public sees today. During this process, the Central Bank paid attention not only to the look of the notes, but also to features to make the notes more secure, and robust substrates to make the notes more durable and last longer in circulation.
For production of the $50 banknote, the Central Bank approached Landquart AG in Switzerland, manufacturer of a cotton-polymer substrate called Durasafe-on which the Swiss banknotes are printed-and Crane Currency in the United States, producer of a security thread called Rapid-similar to the thread used on the US $100 note-to assist. This presented a new manufacturing challenge, as Durasafe and Rapid had never before been used in a single note, and there were properties about each that suggested incompatibility. As the final input, the Central Bank engaged the Canadian Bank Note Company Limited to manage the project, adapt the design, and print the banknote.
The CRISP Evolution $50 is, therefore, an industry first; inspired by the vision of the Central Bank of The Bahamas.
The new $50 banknote is predominantly light blue, with shades of pink, green, orange, and brown. The note maintains the same size and dimensions of existing Bahamian banknotes, and introduces market leading security features, like a clear polymer window cleverly integrated into the window of Parliament House. On the front, the note bears a portrait of the late Sir Roland T. Symonette and an image of a blooming Frangipani flower in the center. The back carries a vignette depicting a rendering of the Central Bank's building.
The banknote boasts many other new and innovative features which can be viewed on the Bank's website at www.centralbankbahamas.com. The Bank's online training tool can also be found on the website or downloaded from the Apple App Store or Google Play Store under the name "CBB Banknote MAP".
