international review on cash management · international review on cash management year iv issue 7...

I N T E R N A T I O N A L R E V I E W O N C A S H M A N A G E M E N T

YEAR IV ISSUE 7 APRIL 2010

Opinion

2 Editorial

3 Interview with Andrew Bailey The Bank of England’s viewpoint on currency management

6 The Banco de la República’s cash centre New facilities to increase security and efficiency

Bernardo Calvo. Banco de la República. Colombia

8 Cash deposit systems Third-party custody of central banks’ banknotes

Kari Takala. Bank of Finland

10 The use of international coding standards by central banks New technologies applied to banknote logistics

Ángel Camarena and Manuela Sebastián. Banco de España

12 The return to the bolivianoCash dispensers as a tool in promoting the circulation of a currency

Gustavo Blacutt. Banco Central de Bolivia

Banknotes and Coins

14 Guatemalan Banknotes Jessica Flores. Banco de Guatemala

16 The Banco Central de Nicaragua’s Treasury Subdirectorate Guillermo Selva. Banco Central de Nicaragua

Cash Activities and Technology

18 Manufacturing low-denomination banknotesSuggestions for extending the lifetime of low-denomination banknotes

Georgy Kornilov. Goznak

21 Digital master die manufacturing systemImproved technology for coin minting

Víctor Feijoo. Real Casa de la Moneda-Fábrica Nacional de Moneda y Timbre

22 Patenting of new banknote security featuresPatents as a leading indicator of future security features

Maurice Perron. Former director at the Banque de France

CIGE 24 VII International Course on Cash Management

Miscellaneous

25 Publications devoted to cash

26 Central banking news

28 Events

30 Banknote security features

An exciting moment

Like previous editions of BILLETARIA, issue seven is the product of thesupport, help and involvement of friends and acquaintances in the richlyinterwoven tapestry the currency world has become. We begin this issuewith an interview with Andrew Bailey, an executive at the Bank ofEngland, and an expert and outstanding professional in the field, whomwe thank for kindly allowing us this interview and sharing with us his ex-perience, thoughts on the future and views on a range of topics such asdistribution policy, banknote technology, high and low denominationbanknotes, and the fight against counterfeiting.

The topics covered in the opinion section include a central bank's policyefforts to recover for the national currency some of the position it hadlost in the country's economy (Bolivia); a study on new distributionsystems implemented by European central banks (Finland); the designand construction of a new manufacturing complex (Colombia); and theimplementation in cash departments of new management systemsdrawn from commercial logistics (Spain). At least nine countries feature inthese initial pages and a similar number are referred to in the news andpublications sections. After our usual look at banknotes and cashdepartments, one of the world's major printing works presents the find-ings of its research into the special characteristics of low denominationnotes (Russia), another printing works describes the application of digitaltechnology in the minting of coins (Spain), and an expert with considera-ble experience in the field (France) presents a study of patent systemsapplied to the banknote industry.

In our view, the international cash community is going through one ofthe most exciting times in its recent history. After several decades ofobscurantism, followed by a few years of uncertainty, the today’s situa-tion is characterised by the results of many long years of work in thebackground, an expanding number of people working in the field, a newstyle of relationships with the supporting industry and up-to-datesystems of business management. Over the last few years it is not justthat international conferences, courses, meetings and seminars on thetopic of cash have flourished; nor that the industry is waking up from itsprotracted lethargy to offer us innovative and almost revolutionary solu-tions in terms of banknote substrates or printing techniques; nor is it justthat banknotes are looking among the latest technological advances forthe most advanced tools for reproduction techniques. It is not just that.It is also that circumstances have permitted new practitioners fromareas outside the banknote world to work alongside managers with along track-record in the traditional industry, who have kept alive the trad-itions and ways of doing things from past ages. The newcomers havefound the opportunity to develop their management abilities in a terrainfull of opportunities, rich in subtleties and exciting and varied challenges;

EditorialJ. Darío Negueruela Banco de España

the industry, finance, security, logistics, international relations, transport,innovation, distribution, human resource management, have joined forceswith the cash area in a terrain open to change, with a service calling,and where the energy brought by this breath of fresh air is the best gua-rantee of a future.

Meanwhile, without there being any coordination between them, a groupof central banks has almost simultaneously begun a series of major pro-jects on a new operating and management model. Some are looking forways to reduce distribution costs, while others have decided to upgradetheir industrial machinery or automate their processes, and yet others areresearching the response of polymer while yet others are looking for inno-vative solutions in the communications field. And all this is taking placewhile efforts continue to meet other overriding market demands, such ascombating counterfeiting, improving the quality of the banknotes in circu-lation, and studying markets and users’ needs.

Studying the cost of cash or competing with other means of paymentdoes not stop new models of business management from being imple-mented, or a root-and-branch revision of the systems and operating pro-cedures that help improve level of service and efficiency indicators. Secu-rity continues to be high on the list of our concerns, but nowadays alwaysgoes hand in hand with indicators of the efficient management of scarceresources.

At BILLETARIA we feel ourselves to be fortunate that, at this excitingjuncture, we are able to offer our journal as a vehicle for communicationand a meeting place for the international cash community. We feel thepride and sense of responsibility that comes with collaborating in anenterprise that is unique for its wealth and diversity, in which all the meritbelongs to the true owners of BILLETARIA: its readers and contributors.Our thanks to you all.

Editorial

Opinion

CONTRIBUTORSJ. Darío Negueruela Director of the Cash and Issue Department. Banco de España / Andrew Bailey Executive Director Banking & Chief Cashier. Bankof England / Bernardo Calvo Director of the Treasury Department. Banco de la República / Kari Takala Advisor in the Cash Department. Bank ofFinland / Ángel Camarena Head of the Cash Division. Banco de España / Manuela Sebastián Head of the Issue Division. Banco de España /Gustavo Blacutt Director. Banco Central de Bolivia / Jessica Flores Expert in the Monetary Issue Department. Banco de Guatemala / GuillermoSelva Treasury Sub-Manager. Banco Central de Nicaragua / Georgy Kornilov International Cooperation Department. Goznak / Víctor Feijoo Head ofEngineering in the Coin Department. Real Casa de la Moneda-Fábrica Nacional de Moneda y Timbre / Maurice Perron Former director at the Banque deFrance / Yolanda Barrera Photographer.

2 BILLETARIA no. 7 April 2010

BILLETARIA no. 7 April 2010 3

Interview with Andrew BaileyJ. Darío Negueruela Banco de España

Andrew Baileyhas worked atthe Bank of Eng-land for over 20years. Before join-ing the Bank, hewas a Re-searchOfficer at the Lon-don School ofEconomics, whichfollowed a BAand PhD fromQueens’ CollegeCambridge. Hestarted his careerin the Interna-

tional Division, before moving to Banking Supervision. Thiswas followed by his first spell in Banking Services, as seniormanager for Policy, Risk and Special Operations. After thathe was the Governor’s Private Secretary, and then Head ofthe International Economic Analysis Division in MonetaryAnalysis. He returned to Banking Services at the beginningof 2004. He has executive responsibility for: (i) operating theUK’s high value payments systems; (ii) with the MarketsDirectorate, providing liquidity to the market and settlementbanks; (iii) issuing banknotes and ensuring their effectivedistribution; and (iv) providing banking services to a rangeof customers. Furthermore, since the onset of the financialcrisis in August 2007, Andrew has been responsible for theBank’s special operations to resolve problems in the bank-ing sector. He is head of the Bank’s Special Resolution Unit,and currently Chairman and Chief Executive of DunfermlineBuilding Society Bridge Bank Ltd. His involvement in spe-cial operations also extends to taking responsibility for theso-called London Approach, in which the Bank uses itsinfluence to seek resolution of problems in company refi-nancings and other such problems. Andrew Bailey is mem-ber of the Governor’s Executive Team.

Q. We are here talking in Washington, during a break in the presen-tations for the 2009 Banknote Conference. Dear Andrew, thank youvery much for your kindness in accepting our invitation to be inter-viewed by BILLETARIA. Here we are, two professionals quite youngin the world of banknotes. I started in 2001 to develop the project forthe changeover to the euro of the Banco de España. You haveworked for the Bank of England for nearly 25 years but for the first 20years with no involvement in banknotes. From your current positionas Executive Director, could you explain your point of view about theworld of banknotes?

A. When I became Chief Cashier and Executive Director responsible forBanking Services I became involved with banknotes. I was very quicklyconvinced that it is a most fascinating area of central banking. It’s com-

pletely different from other things I do. I should say that I have quite a fewresponsibilities at the Bank of England. I run our banking operations, pay-ments operations and I am also responsible for the resolution of banksthat get into difficulties, so I’ve been very busy over the last two years. Forme banknotes are fascinating because they are deeply connected to theworking of the central bank as we’re issuing central bank money. Itinvolves many things that the rest of central banking doesn’t involve.We’re issuing a product, and there are not many products in any countrythat are as numerous as banknotes: we have over 2 billion of our bank-notes in circulation and over a billion in store at any given time, so wehave a huge product management operation. Sadly, we also have to dealwith criminals whether they are counterfeiters or people trying to rob cashcentres. So there’s a large security element to what we do. Our first andforemost objective is the integrity of the currency. We also have to meetthe public’s demand for banknotes, and that’s a distribution issue. Thereare hard challenges in that area. I always tell my colleagues who have hadno involvement with banknotes that you would be surprised how difficultthese issues are.

Q. The issuing function encompasses a broad range of activities.What do you consider to be the ideal characteristics for a banknotespecialist?

A. This is a very interesting question. Well I think you have to have a mix-ture of staff. You have to have specialists. At the Bank of England weprovide a forensic and scientific analysis service for banknotes and wealso have experts in security features who give us expert analysis of thesecurity features that we should use on our future notes. I think that’simportant because we need to have the people who understand thethreat of counterfeiting – from having analysed this area and havingunderstood how counterfeiters work – and thus actually inform decisionson new notes. The expertise of those people is essential. Of course wealso need to have people who manage an operation, and a very bigoperation at that.

Q. I firmly believe that the issuing function is an essential responsi-bility of Central Banks. How is our activity viewed by the colleaguesworking in other areas of the Bank?

A. My responsibilities go a lot wider than cash, but it was that aspect thatwas new to me. I’d done most of the rest of it at some time. If you ask peo-ple what they associate their central bank with, and this before the financialcrisis hit us, people would say two things: setting interest rates and issuingbanknotes. Those are the two things we do that the public is most awareof. Sadly, over the last two years we have to add dealing with problems inthe banking system to that. Nonetheless, those are the two things that overtime the public have most associated us with. How is that reflected in theattention we give to these two areas? I used to be involved in monetarypolicy, I am an economist, and I’m not in any sense making a negativecomment about monetary policy, but the amount of attention given to ourrole of issuing banknotes is very small by comparison. And over the pastyears, before I became Chief Cashier, there had been some critical inci-dents involving problems with the note issue. This is one of the issues I dis-cussed with the Governor when I moved into this role, and we agreed veryquickly that issuing banknotes was central to the Bank’s remit and there-fore needed to receive a proportionate amount of attention. So, comingback to your original question, I absolutely agree with you on this, we haveto give issuing banknotes the greater importance in the Bank it deserves.

Interview with Andrew Bailey

Opinion


Q. A central bank has to attend to the demand of the public, but it isnot met directly by it. Cash is distributed by financial institutionswhich contract cash in transit companies to perform the operationalside of the task. In this context, who are the customers of the Bankof England?

A. Actually for the Bank we have multiple clients. Over the past fewyears we have devoted a significant amount of attention to understand-ing how the distribution process works and who our clients are. We runa distribution scheme with a small number of members who comprisethe wholesale cash distributors who operate the cash centres that dis-tribute notes. The wholesale cash distributors are either banks, cash intransit companies or the Post Office. Some banks choose to belongdirectly to the scheme; others do not, though at a different level, are stilldeeply involved because they are issuing notes. Of the customers ofthe wholesale cash distributors, the retailers are the most importantdue to the sheer scale of their cash contracts. One of the things welearned about our distribution scheme is that the biggest supermarketretailer (Tesco) has the biggest cash use contract in the UK and whenthey moved banks this had a very big impact on the way our schemeworks. We can’t have a scheme that is not robust to changes such asthis. One of the things that we learned from thatepisode was that we needed to go and talk to thebig retailers about their attitudes towards bank-notes and their use of cash. We have recently runa pilot scheme with another big supermarket chain(Sainsbury’s), and that’s paid real dividends for usin terms of deepening our relationship with cashusers.

Q. I would like to share with you an idea I’ve hadthat it would be useful to discriminate the securi-ty features across the different denominations ofa family of banknotes. It doesn’t really makesense to insert the latest (and more expensive)innovations in low denominations that do notsuffer from counterfeiting attacks.

A. I’m glad you have raised this question as it actu-ally coincides with thinking we’ve been doingabout security features. I think like most centralbanks we have traditionally had the same family offeatures on our note denominations. We haveseries in the same way as you have for the euronotes. We are however beginning to think that maynot be the right approach. Each denomination has

available commercial product. The Australian central bank has a very lowbanknote counterfeiting rate, but it worries me that polymer, which coun-terfeiters can buy commercially, unlike banknote paper, would be attrac-tive to the criminals that counterfeit our banknotes. I’ve always been con-cerned about that. The security features of polymer are relatively under-developed, though this is changing now and I’m very interested in thehybrids that are now beginning to appear as I think they may have thepotential to solve both the problems of durability and security.

Q. With regard to the dilemma “expensive banknote versus simplebanknotes” in the development of a new series of banknotes, whatis your view or advice on this?

A. To give you an example, we always ask ourselves which security fea-tures people actually look at. We have a team that is responsible for pub-lic education and we’re always very keen to ensure that our decisions onbanknotes incorporate the feedback we receive from the team and,through them, the public. In our education work we tend to stress thingslike the feel of the note as a way to identify a genuine banknote - this issomething the counterfeiters don’t do very well. However, we find that thepublic instead tend to look at things that are shiny, like the hologram. We

know from the counterfeits we see that the counterfeiters can’t reproducethe hologram, however they don’t have to do that of course, they justhave to create something that deceives the public. And they do. I’mtherefore skeptical about holograms as a security measure. Perhaps it’stechnology that is past its sell-by date.

Q. As you have already discussed in your presentation to the audi-ence of the 2009 Banknote Conference, although electronic meansof payment have expanded in recent years, the amount of banknotesin circulation is also increasing in the majority of countries. I believethat those who predicted the death of banknotes would modify theirforecast models and their conclusions.

A. You’re absolutely right. As I said in the speech, there’s an interestingdifference between banknotes and cheques. Cheques are clearly indecline and in the UK banks are discussing how we might end the use ofthe cheque. That will require some innovation (to ensure there are alterna-tive means of making payments currently made by cheque) but it is nowbeing discussed. By contrast, the volume of banknotes in circulation con-tinues to rise. I think the thing that distinguishes banknotes and cheques

a different characteristic in terms of its use, and a different function inthat sense. We should therefore look at the security features in terms ofhow they fit the characteristics in the use of each different note. The£50 denomination is very much a store of value and not a transactionalnote. I would like to think that people who hold them inspect them fairlycarefully. There isn’t a physical quality problem because they’re notreally being knocked around in transactions. There are not many coun-terfeit £50 notes and it’s not counterfeited much because it’s too diffi-cult to pass in circulation. The vast majority of counterfeits of Bank ofEngland notes are instead of £20 notes. This follows the logic thatcounterfeiters attack the highest value notes that it is easiest to passinto circulation. They are going for the staple ATM notes, the mostcommon ones.

This goes back to the question of the £5 notes (which I raised in my con-ference speech), which are taking a lot of wear and tear. So we have toalter the policies to make distribution and circulation more efficient so wecan get back the unfit £5 banknotes. But we can’t ignore the difficultquestion of the durability of £5s. One option would be to use polymer inthe £5, however I have concerns about polymer in that it is a fairly readily

Andrew Bailey (right) and J. DaríoNegueruela (left) talk during a breakin the presentations for the 2009Banknote Conference / BILLETARIA


Opinion

is that there has been a revolution in terms of the public’s access to bank-notes. ATMs really are a revolution. The public can now get banknotes 24hours a day. While the cheque has stood still and declined, I think therehas been a revolution in the means of issuing banknotes over the last 20years.

Q. From my point of view, the best policy against counterfeiting is toinform the public about the security features of banknotes. With thatknowledge, the activity of counterfeiters can be counteracted.

A. All central banks face the same challenge. Our objective as a centralbank is to maintain public confidence in the currency. That means that weneed to stop the level of counterfeiting getting anywhere near the levelthat could start to undermine public confidence. We can never stop allcounterfeits and I always have to say to the public in Britain that we can’tproduce a note that can’t be counterfeited. We also emphasise to thepolice that it is important to act pre-emptively and ensure that counterfeit-ers are caught early, rather than waiting until there is a large volume ofcounterfeit notes in circulation to act.


Opinion


Q. Do you think it could be useful to give the public a lot of informa-tion about counterfeits or to the contrary, it might be dangerous todo so because it could alarm the public?

A. One of the things we did when I became Chief Cashier was to step upour educational efforts a lot. As part of this effort we monitored news stor-ies on counterfeiting, both in the national and local press. This was veryinteresting and gave us very useful information. We realised very quicklythat most of the stories appeared in local newspapers and that the localnewspaper reporters talked to the local police to get background informa-tion for their stories. And I was quite shocked to read some of the thingsthe police were saying about counterfeits. For example, they were compli-menting the quality of the counterfeits and saying that anybody could befooled by them. We were very concerned to see this as such commentscould undermine confidence in the currency. We therefore worked veryhard and contacted all the police forces to educate them on counterfeitsand gave them a script that would focus on how you recognise a genuinebanknote. This has worked. Now, in these articles, we find the police say-ing things that are consistent with our public education messages. Forme, this is a great success because I thought the police were actuallyundermining confidence in the currency.

(continued on page 29)

Spring / JDN


The cash centre is the Banco de la República’s manufacturing complex,integrating banknote production (banknote printing works), storage, cur-rency shipment and handling (Treasury Department), and cash-relatedresearch and development (Technical Manufacturing Department). Thecash centre covers an area of 62,417 square metres in the Ciudad Salitredistrict in the outskirts of Bogotá, a location which is ideal for access bothby cash-in-transit companies and lorries transporting coins, notes and theraw materials used in the production process. Its location is also near toBogotá international airport. The horizontal layout of the new building inwhich the centre’s machinery and equipment is housed, and the use ofthe latest technology, means all the centre’s tasks can be carried out withoptimal efficiency and security.

What motivated the project?

The head office of the Banco de la República, located in the heart of thecity of Bogotá, began to house cash operations in the late 1950s. How-ever, as the number of financial institutions grew, and consequently chequepayments and receipts of deposits from both the public and from financialinstitutions also increased, it became necessary to move into other build-ings nearby. In particular, an additional building was used as an auxiliarytreasury from which payments were made to financial institutions. Thisbuilding was located 100 metres away from the Bank’s headquarters, ona very busy street. The building in which the auxiliary treasury was locatedonly allowed access to four armoured vehicles at a time, which led tobadly parked vehicles waiting near the building, clogging up the traffic asa result. Moreover, three or four shipments a day were made between thebuildings, in order to supply the auxiliary treasury with the banknotes itneeded to pay financial institutions and collect deposited notes. Al-together this meant a large number of employees were involved in theloading and offloading of armoured vehicles, with the attendant deploy-ment of security personnel this required.

The banknote printing works was located in an industrial district in theeast of the city, approximately 5 kilometres from the Bank’s head office. Itoccupied an old five-storey building with only limited space, which pre-vented a more efficient production cycle’s being implemented. The contin-uous journeys to deliver new banknotes to the Treasury Department, withthe corresponding protection and security, resulted in increased costs.

In view of these factors, in 1994 the Board of Directors of the Banco de laRepública asked the director of the Bank of England’s banknote printingworks, Mr. Alex Jarvis, to draft a detailed report on the operation of boththe banknote printing works and the treasury department. The followingyear he submitted his report, thereby originating the cash managementcentre project. The report’s main conclusions were that although the pro-duction plant was in good working order, space constraints did not allowmore productive machinery to be installed. Moreover, the vertical arrange-ment of the building made it difficult to reorganise the vaults and storageareas so as to improve their efficiency. Also, although it was necessary toincrease output, there was insufficient space for a second production line.

The Banco de la República’s cash centre

Opinion

The Banco de la República’s cash centreBernardo Calvo1 Banco de la República. Colombia

This article describes Colombia’s cash operations centre,summarising the reasons why it was built and the benefitsthis shared infrastructure has brought.

Finally, the treasury area suffered limitations of space that made it impos-sible to increase the storage capacity or improve the areas in which finan-cial institutions were attended to. More suitable facilities were also neededfor the storage, distribution and destruction of banknotes and other secu-rities.

In February 1995 the Bank of England was asked to conduct a study todetermine the feasibility of relocating the banknote printing works and theTreasury Department in a new building. As a result of the analysis, it wasdecided that a cash management centre be built in the Ciudad Salitre dis-trict, combining the print works and the Treasury Department on thesame site. The aim of the new building was to ensure output could bemaintained over the long term, while optimising the transport and distribu-tion of the raw materials, consumables and finished products. All its activ-ities would take place within a secure area which centralised treasuryoperations along with tasks such as sorting, counting and destruction,storage and distribution of currency. This would significantly reduce therisks arising from movements of currency between the print works, headoffice and the auxiliary treasury.

The project was directed by one of the bank’s senior managers, reportingdirectly to the Industry and Treasury Sub-directorate. Progress was mon-itored periodically by a committee including the bank’s executive managerand a number of under-managers. The scale and complexity of the proj-ect required that each of the bank’s areas with a significant participation1. With the collaboration of Nasly Garavito, specialist in the Treasury Department.

Facilities of the Banco de la República’s cash management centre in Bogotá / Banco de la República

Opinion


in the cash centre, such as the printing works, treasury and building man-agement, also appoint coordinators to deal with issues affecting their spe-cific area. The Bank’s Buildings Department was responsible for projectimplementation in relation to the civil engineering and infrastructure work.Three companies were contracted, two from Colombia and one from theUnited States. One of the Colombian firms handled the coordination and

general management of the civil engineering and the other thetechnical, administrative and accounting side. The US companywas involved in controlling reception of the valuables movementsystem. The company supplying the printing equipment wasresponsible for the transfer and installation of the printing line, inconstant coordination with, and under the close supervision of,the bank’s printing works.

The Project took five and a half years to complete, running from2000 when the plans were submitted to the Project Committeeand the overall timing of the plans approved, through to the firsthalf of 2005, when the finishing touches were made. The officialopening took place in October 2005, when the Banknote Print-ing Works was transferred to the new site. The Treasury andother departments were transferred a year later.

Project objectives

The new cash management centre was created with a number ofobjectives. The first aim was to achieve operational excellence,with the physical integration of currency production and distribu-tion functions and processes with research and development.Consequently, facilities meeting the highest security standardswere planned, with construction on a single level to avoid verticalmovements. Additionally, a new backup computing centre wascreated so as to enable business continuity following a criticalevent or isolation of the main office. Also, more spacious andcomfortable premises were made available in which to improvethe cash deposit and payment services for financial institutions,and reduce the risks inherent in this activity. The new, centralisedfacilities enabled a reduction in overall operating expenses andtransport costs resulting from the need to move valuables.

Benefits obtained from the creation of the cash managementcentre

The new centre solved the problems of limited space faced by both thebanknote printing works and the treasury. The centre was built to meetthe most demanding security standards for all its operations and it isequipped with the most up-to-date machinery and equipment. The centrehas yielded a variety of benefits, including:

■ The possibility of adding a further banknote production line, with highcapacity machinery and more suitable storage areas for raw materialsand part-finished products.

■ Minimising the risks inherent in the transport of cash between the bank-note printing works and the various treasury areas.

■ Integration of all treasury operations in a single physical space.

■ Guaranteeing the continuity of the Banco de la República’s operationsand critical functions through the support centre located in the cashmanagement centre, such that if a critical event occurs which interruptstelephone services or hampers operations at the head office computingcentre, the bank can continue normal operations from the new building.

■ The installation of a system for the movement of valuables which identi-fies, moves, stores, retrieves and monitors banknotes arranged in con-tainers and boxes, comprising a transport control system, storage andretrieval system and a system of automatically guided vehicles, thereby

The Banco de la República’s cash centre

ensuring the highest standards of security and efficiency are met withthe minimum human interaction.

■ The way the building’s energy, telecommunications and ventilation net-works are handled has earned it the epithet of an “intelligent building.” Italso allows for rapid changes to be made to the components of thefacade so as to meet the needs of the internal furnishing and distribu-tion options. The use of an accessible false ceiling permits inspectionand installation of lighting, ventilation and security systems, etc. Thelocation of vertical and horizontal conduits in the false ceiling and underthe floors facilitates distribution of water and waste piping, voice anddata networks, etc.

■ The installation of a comprehensive security system including detectors,sensors and thermostats for fire detection and to control special build-ing equipment; installing closed-circuit TV to monitor the building’sentrances and exits and monitor the movements of people and ve-hicles; and the use of loudspeakers and audible and visual alarms toannounce emergencies or contingencies, etc.

■ The building has back-up electrical generators to cover its needs duringpower cuts, and reserve water tanks to cover long periods of waterrationing.

Conclusions

The construction and organisation of the Banco de la República’s cashmanagement centre was envisaged as a long-term solution to the difficul-ties of space, location and functionality that the banknote printing worksand the Bank’s treasury suffered from. Since it came into operation, thecash management centre has made it possible to boost the efficiency ofeach of the stages of the banknote production process. Similarly, thenumber of journeys needed and the time taken to delivery currency to thetreasury and subsequently distribute it to financial institutions and thepublic has been reduced, and the centre has a fully automated vaultwhich meets the most demanding security requirements. In short, its con-struction was a very wise and timely decision by Colombia’s central bank,enabling it to enhance its cash handling operations.

Automatically guided vehicles for transporting cash / Banco de la República

Cash deposit systems

Opinion


Cash deposit systemsKari Takala Bank of Finland

In September 2009, Suomen Pankki, Finland’scentral bank, ran a seminar on the subject of thebanknote deposit systems implemented by thecentral banks of the euro area. This article pres-ents the main conclusions of the seminar, and inparticular, the characteristics of the agreementsbetween central banks and third-parties (usuallyfinancial institutions or cash-in-transit compa-nies) under which the third-party is authorised tohold cash without having the bear the opportunitycost that this would entail.

Definitions of cash deposit systems

The outsourced cash custody systems that a number of central banks inthe European Union have implemented fall into two categories:

■ Depots: the central bank pays interest on the cash which financial insti-tutions hold, either in their vaults, cash dispensers or in transit. The cen-tral bank registers the banknotes concerned on its books as cash in cir-culation.

■ Notes held to order (NHTO): the central bank stores cash in vaultslocated off its premises. As these are unissued notes, they are notregistered on the books as notes in circulation, rather they are treatedfor accounting purposes in the same way as banknotes stored in thevaults of the central bank.

However, it is worth underlining that there are several varieties in eachcategory which result in clear differences between the systems imple-mented in each country.

Origin of the deposit systems in the European Union

Deposit systems have been implemented in several European countries inthe last ten years, although they have been operating for several decadesin Greece. Also, back in the seventies and eighties, Ireland and the UnitedKingdom, respectively, set up NHTO systems with a number of clientinstitutions. More recently, deposit systems have been implemented inFinland, Sweden, Denmark, the Netherlands, Spain, Malta and Slovenia,and they are at the early stages in Hungary and Cyprus. Only the Nordiccountries currently operate the depot system. The remainder of the euroarea’s banks have opted for NHTO systems.

The choice of type of deposit system is determined by historical factors orthe specific characteristics of the country. Central banks that have put adeposit system in place usually have relatively few branches, which is whythese schemes tend to be more popular in smaller countries. This is con-sistent with the idea that deposit systems act as a substitute for centralbank branches. This approach is also taken by countries that have largelyoutsourced their cash handling activities to cash-in-transit (CIT) compa-nies. Moreover, in these countries, central banks do not offer charge-incurring cash services. However, these options are related to the func-tions the central bank wishes to perform in the cash cycle. At present,many central banks have set up modified NHTO systems which in someways go beyond banknote storage. For example, debits are deferred orcredits advanced, or the depositing of unsorted notes is permitted, etc.

The main motivation for implementing a deposit system is to reducetransport costs by avoiding unnecessary movements of cash and to miti-gate the inherent risks associated with the cash transport activity. More-over, it enables financial institutions to reduce their idle cash balances. Ingeneral, a further consequence is the reduction in the volume of notes forsorting by central banks, given the increase in private recycling and thefact that notes come back to the central bank less often, with the excep-tion of the Spanish model, which prevents the recycling of banknotesdeposited in an NHTO system.

Connections / JDN

Cash deposit systems

Opinion


In 2008, the total banknotes held by thedeposit systems existing in the Eurosystemaveraged 3,500 million euros, of which Spainand Ireland together accounted for approxi-mately 70%. The banknotes of central banksheld outside of their vaults accounted for 0.3%of the total currency in circulation in theEurosystem and approximately a fifth of creditinstitutions’ cash holdings.

The pros and cons of deposit systems

There are numerous benefits to be obtainedfrom setting up a deposit system. That whichcentral banks mention most often is the reduc-tion in the number of cash movements, which inturn has a positive impact on the security of thecash cycle. Deposit systems also enable a cleardivision of tasks and can contribute to enhanc-ing the efficiency of the cash cycle. Moreover,deposit systems, indirectly improve the distribu-tion of banknotes to users in the variousregions. As a consequence, deposit systemscan cut the societal cost of cash.

However, although deposit systems can helpcentral banks manage and control the cashcycle, without entailing a high level of directparticipation, they are not without their draw-backs. First of all, central banks’ control overthe quality of low denomination circulatingbanknotes can be problematic if the return fre-quency drops significantly. Also, deposit sys-tems can be problematic if only credit institu-tions or just some of them are allowed toaccess these services, given the distortionsthat it can produce in terms of the competitionbetween the various professional cash han-dlers. Moreover, the deposit system promotescentralised management of cash in privatecentres.

Central banks need to draw up plans to guidethe cash cycle and can always establish therules of operation of the deposit system andthereby influence the cash cycle. However, ifthe deposit system produces significant diver-

Given that in NHTO systems cash is held off the central bank’s premises,participants are required to have insurance or collateral covering the sumsthey hold in their custody. Therefore, the cost savings in the NHTO sys-tem would be lower than in the case of the depot system. The situationmay be even more complex if central banks allow the cash held outsidetheir vaults to be stored in cash dispensers or in transit as well as in typ-ical NHTO systems. Moreover, the deferred charge or advanced creditrules, by saving the opportunity cost of cash holdings, can have the sameeffects as deposit systems.

Conclusion

Deposit systems can clearly improve many aspects of the functioning ofthe cash cycle as they avoid unnecessary transport, increase security andimprove local distribution of cash. However, it needs to be borne in mindthat the vast majority of banknotes are in the hands of the public (con-sumers and retailers) and that, in any event, cash-handling professionals,in general, tend to aim to minimise their cash balances.

Premises of Bank of Finland in Helsinki / Bank of Finland

gences from the desired model of cash cycle, the regulations may resultin greater complexity. For example, it should be noted that the creationof NHTO systems within the Eurosystem is not an exclusively nationalissue, as they reduce the monetary income from notes in circulation,which are distributed through each central bank’s participation in thecapital of the European Central Bank, and as a result, affect the mone-tary income of the 16 central banks of the Eurosystem.

Therefore, an assessment of deposit systems cannot be entirely based onactuarial calculations, as there are important economic factors, includingthe consequences for central bank clients. For credit institutions there is abig difference between the NHTO system and the depot system, as theyhave very different consequences for the yields on assets held in currencyform. In the depot system the central bank remunerates the cash held byinstitutions with compensatory interest calculated as a function of short-term interest rates or any other type of interest (although institutionswould prefer an interest rate that is closer to that on its lending to cus-tomers, which is generally higher).

The use of international coding standards by central banks

Ángel Camarena and Manuela Sebastián Banco de España



Opinion

Linear barcodes

The first attempt at the widespread use of codes in industrial processesand commercial distribution was the coding of products and componentsusing the linear barcode system. This type of code consists of two differ-ent elements: a numeric code and a graphic. The number uniquely ident-ifies the product throughout the system or gives an address where theidentification information can be found (a computer file, for example). Thegraphic represents the code in the form of a series of parallel lines of vary-ing thicknesses which can be read automatically by a barcode scanner.

1. One of the differences, however, is the high legal unit value of the product, and thus the nec-essary increase in security.

In consumer-product markets, efficient logisticsis one of the critical points that can make a differ-ence between distribution’s being a success orfailure and it is the best guarantee of the survivalof the manufacturers and distributors of the prod-ucts concerned. Over the years, the use of inter-national standards, permitting product identifica-tion/coding and efficient information exchangebetween commercial partners, has shown itself tobe one of the best tools with which to make con-sumer product logistics more efficient, reducingthe costs of warehouse management, transport,distribution, etc.

Distributing cash has a number of significant fea-tures1 in common with the distribution of con-sumer products. It therefore seems logical to usesimilar tools to those used successfully by majordistribution companies to ensure the distributionprocess is efficient and so achieve a more fluidsupply. This can yield significant cost savings forsociety. Thus, we can talk about a cash cycle in asimilar way to that in which distributors talk of“supply chains” for soft drinks, ready meals, orany other mass consumer product.

The idea was patented in the United States in the 1950s, although severaldecades were to pass before its use became commonplace. Like anyother innovation, bar-coding initially had to overcome a considerablenumber of difficulties. In particular, there was a shortage of tools able toprocess the information in the code rapidly (such as small computers atthe checkout, which did not become widespread until many years later),making it of little use to merchants. Moreover, every innovation needs a“critical mass” of users, which is difficult to achieve but necessary if use isto become widespread and the majority to benefit from its shared use.Once this “critical mass” had been reached, and the old tills in smallshops were replaced by computer terminals with a scanner, the successof barcodes in retail distribution was assured.

The second generation of codes

After the success of the first linear barcodes, in which the amount of infor-mation was limited (or alternatively the relevant information had to be storedin a separate location for which the code was used as an address) varioussubsequent initiatives sought to define other types of codes, media or com-binations of the two, that would allow more information to be attached tothe individual product. These efforts included multidimensional bar codesand codes that could be read by radiofrequency signals (RFID). The new

Banknote bundles identified using barcodes / BILLETARIA



Opinion

radiofrequency identification (RFID) systems have made it possible to readand store codes with larger amounts of information in compact form. Thisinformation can be read remotely from a large number of products simulta-neously rather than needing to read each one individually. One of thebiggest obstacles to the rapid spread RFID use was the initially high cost ofboth the label bearing the information, known as the RFID tag, and of theassociated equipment. However, rapid technological progress has meantthe system has advanced quickly and is now entirely within reach of largeretail distribution businesses. Among the best known codes used by theradio-frequency ID system is the EPC or Electronic Product Code system.

Use of coding in banknote distribution

Along the same lines, in order to achieve greater efficiency in the distribu-tion of its products (banknotes and coins), so that they reach their endusers more rapidly and cost-effectively, a number of central banks havebegun to advocate the use of product codes along the supply chain (cashcycle) in a similar way to manufacturers and retailers of consumer goods.Their widespread use will facilitate traceability2, both internally within theorganisation and externally, thus promoting greater efficiency in the cashmarket, with the attendant cost savings, which will inevitably benefit theconsumer.

Internal traceability requires the prior identification of one or more trace-ability units (whether of banknotes or coins) which have been definedwithin the central bank’s internal processes. This traceability runs fromreception of notes and coins from the printing works or mint, or fromvaults where they are deposited, through to their release on to the market,and again when they are returned to the central bank. It needs to traceunits that are in circulation, being sorted, counted, repackaged andstored in the bank’s vaults prior to their being put back into circulation ordestroyed if unfit. In those cases where the print works or mint is adepartment of the central bank, internal traceability also envisages inte-gration of the printing or minting process with those processes just men-tioned.

External traceability refers not only to the act of putting banknotes orcoins into circulation or withdrawing them, by delivering them or receivingthem to or from the first intermediary in the chain, but also envisages thepossibility of extending this traceability to all stages of the cycle. That is tosay, from the time cash is delivered by the central bank until it is with-drawn from circulation, including the successive movements betweenfinancial institutions, cash-in-transit companies, authorised recyclers, andeven large store chains which receive large quantities of banknotes andcoins from the public as means of payment for goods and distribute andredirect them on to other participants in the cash cycle for processing.

Types of codes used by central banks

When promoting the use of codes on their products (i.e. notes and coins),central banks should avoid the temptation to use proprietary codes,which although they may be very sophisticated and specialised, are along way removed from the most widely used commercial practices. Inour view, central banks should use the coding standards that are inter-nationally recognised by distribution companies, of the same type asthose used by large manufacturers of consumer products and distributionchains (GS1 standards or similar), as this is the only way of ensuring thatits use can be extended to the whole supply chain and thereby easilyachieve the “critical mass” necessary to enable them to contribute effec-tively to enhancing the efficiency of the cash distribution chain.

This need for central banks to play an active role in improving cash distri-bution channels is especially important in the euro area, in which multiplestates are participating in a common currency and promoting its free flowacross their borders in the form of a mass consumer product. Specificagreements between certain central banks in the euro area are laying thefoundations on which to start an open and trans-national project in whichit is hoped that the vast majority of commercial banks, cash-in-transitcompanies and other actors in the cash market will soon participate. Thiswill help ensure notes and coins move in a fluid, secure and efficient waythroughout the cash cycle and across these shared borders, adaptingtheir movements to the specific needs and culture of each place, withoutimposing on national participants any additional distribution obligations,such as frequently arise as a result of the use of specific standardsdesigned for a particular national context. The immediate application ofnew systems will undoubtedly contribute to significantly reducing themuch commented upon “societal costs of cash.“

Conclusion

The use of international product identification standards is today anessential requirement for the correct, fluid and error-free functioning ofinformation exchange between organisations, so as to ensure theirunique, global and unambiguous identification. By means of such stand-ards it is also possible –and necessary for the smooth functioning of thesupply system– to identify locations of warehouses, invoices, deliverynotes, orders, people, etc.

To ensure its future as a means of payment, the use of cash must becompetitive with other alternatives. The fact that all the links in the distri-bution chain, i.e. all the participants in the cash cycle, use the same logis-tic standards, not just in physical movements of merchandise but also inthose of means of payment and transmissions between all the partici-pants of information regarding these means of payment, will undoubtedlycontribute to this. National central banks need to promote the use ofthese standards, starting by using them in all their internal processes andin the links that connect these processes with those of third parties. Inorder to achieve an efficient use of these logistic standards, central banksshould renounce individual approaches, which while they may offer betterquality information, would do so at the expense of their universal applic-ability.

2. Traceability is understood to refer to a set of pre-defined and self-contained procedures thatenable the history, location and trajectory of a product or batch of products to be deter-mined along the whole length of the supply chain at any time using a specific set of tools.

Different types of coding / BILLETARIA

The return to the boliviano

Opinion


The US dollar began to play the role of the national currency when thecountry was going through a period of hyperinflation accompanied by aprofound depreciation in the rate given on the informal currency exchangemarket. The dollarisation of the economy reached unimaginableextremes, as it was not unusual for people to pay for bread, taxi fares, aswell as other more expensive items such as household appliances,clothes, cars, etc. in US dollars. Indeed the dollar virtually became thesole currency for transactions.

The graph below, which shows the index of dollarisation of deposits in thefinancial system, shows how in February 2003 deposits in US dollarsaccounted for 93.7% of the total, compared with 6.3% of deposits in thenational currency.


In order to benefit from the advantages of the use of the national curren-cy, the Bolivian state set itself the task of remonetising the national econo-my, referred to as “bolivanisation”, which involved adopting a series ofmeasures aimed at disincentivising the use of dollars in transactions of alltypes.

The dollarisation of the Bolivian economy

After the hyperinflation of 1984 and 1985, in which Bolivia’s annual infla-tion rate reached a peak of 11,750%, the second highest in the world, theUS dollar became the refuge currency, and was soon accepted as legaltender for transactions of all types. This turned Bolivia into a dual-curren-cy country, and today both the dollar and the boloviano are used side byside for the whole range of transactions.

Bolivia is undergoing a period of profoundpolitical, economic and social changes.One manifestation of these changes isundoubtedly the process of remonetisa-tion of the economy, understood as a pro-motion of increased use of the boliviano infinancial transactions.

ME: Deposits denominated in US dollars.

MV: Deposits in the national currency, indexed to the US dollar.

MN: Deposits in bolivianos.

UFV: Deposits in bolivianos indexed to the home promotion unit, an index which takes inßation into account.

40

50

60

70

80

90

5

15

25

35

45

55

6,3 %

%

50,2%

ME + MV

MN+UFV

Jan-03

Jul-03

Jul-04

Jul-05

Jan-04

Jan-05

Jul-06

Jan-06

Jul-07

Jan-07

Jul-08

Jan-08

Jul-09

Jan-09

D

D

D

%

48,1%

Deposits in the financial system

The return to the bolivianoGustavo Blacutt Banco Central de Bolivia


Opinion


One of the main measures was the creation of a tax on financial transac-tions, which initially taxed transactions in both the foreign and nationalcurrencies, but after it had been in force for two years, it was applied onlyto foreign currency transactions. Another of the measures having animpact was a widening of the exchange-rate differential imposed byBolivia’s central bank on the sale and purchase of United States dollars,which was increased from two to ten basis points.

Also, the appreciation of the national currency against the US dollar fromlate 2005 and in particular in the first two quarters of 2008 made animportant contribution to the “bolivianisation” of the economy. The globalcrisis in the last quarter of 2008 slowed the rate of remonetisation slightly,however. Nevertheless, the available indicators show signs that the levelsof use of the bolivianos reached in 2008 will be exceeded.

The distribution of the boliviano by ATMs

In order to increase the use of the boliviano, the distribution of variousdenominations of banknotes in ATMs was envisaged. This was an admin-istrative issue, closely tied to currency management. The aim of theactions undertaken was for ATMs to issue notes denominated solely inthe national currency.

Since the introduction of ATMs, the financial system had opted to distrib-ute 100 and 50 bolivian notes and 20 and 100 US dollar notes, whichundoubtedly contributed to the dollarisation of the economy, while at thesame time distorting the normal and balanced distribution of a variety ofdenominations of banknote.

The problems in commercial transactions did not take long to appear.The point was reached where the public had sufficient 100 and 50 boli-viano notes, but lacked the smaller denomination notes (20 and 10 boli-

vianos). 100 boliviano notes could not be used to pay for goods and serv-ices because the smaller denomination notes needed to give change haddisappeared. This shortage still persists today in the Bolivian economy,although to a lesser extent.

The initiative to regulate the distribution of low denomination banknotesby ATMs arose in response to this shortage. The actors in the financialsystem were asked to issue only boliviano notes through ATMs, so as toovercome the lack of small denomination notes, and encourage boliviani-sation. As it turned out to be difficult to convince the banks to cooperateon achieving a more balanced distribution of banknote denominations,the scheme started with a more modest demand than initially envisaged.Thus, at first ATMs were required to distribute either 10 or 20 bolivianonotes, rather than both denominations as had been planned. In practice,the financial system opted to distribute 20, 100 and 200 boliviano notesand kept a cassette dedicated to 100 dollar notes. However, none of thebanks distributed 10 boliviano notes through its ATMs. Thus, the measureto promote the distribution of low denomination notes was less effectivethan had been hoped. Nevertheless, the initiative was well received by thepublic, who began to treat the 20 boliviano denomination as the lowest inthe family of notes.

Later on, a distortion in circulation appeared when the 200 bolivianonotes were issued. The authorities reacted to this by obliging banks to fillATMs exclusively with Bolivian banknotes, and in particular, 10 and 20boliviano notes. The measure was accepted by the majority of financialinstitutions, with the consequent improvement in banknote distributionacross all denominations.

After the process described above, in early 2009 the Bolivian central bankissued a resolution regulating the distribution of banknotes by financialinstitutions through ATMs. The requirements imposed regarding the dif-ferent denominations were as follows:

One cassette was to be filled with 10boliviano notes and another with 20boliviano notes. The third cassettecould contain 50, 100 or 200 bolivianonotes, without restriction, in accord-ance with the bank’s preferences. Afourth cassette was permitted to beused for the distribution of dollars.

Conclusion

The objective of improving the distribu-tion of low denomination banknoteshas been achieved. However, the goalof promoting the exclusive use of boli-vianos for transactions has only partial-ly been achieved. Nevertheless, theBanco Central de Bolivia is convincedthat in the end all transactions will takeplace in bolivianos. To this end, a finalmeasure is pending adoption: that allthe cassettes in ATMs are loaded onlywith boliviano notes.

Absences / JDN

Denomination Circulation

Q100 86%

Q50 6%

Q20 3%

Q10 2%

Q5 2%

Q1 1%

Breakdown of issued banknotes

Guatemalan Banknotes

Banknotes and Coins


Guatemalan BanknotesJessica Flores Banco de Guatemala

According to article 132 of the constitution of the Republic of Guatemala,the state has the sole authority to issue banknotes, a function it performsthrough the Central Bank. Article 2 of Guatemala’s Monetary Act (LeyMonetaria) stipulates that only the Banco de Guatemala is authorised toissue notes and coins in the country.

The banknotes in circulation in Guatemala have denominations of 1, 5,10, 20, 50 and 100 quetzals. All these notes are of the same size: a rect-angle 156 millimetres long by 67 millimetres tall. The notes have theimage of various important personalities from the country’s history on thefront and a representation of events from Guatemalan history on theback.

At the end of 2009 a total of 478 million notes of all six denominationswere in circulation, with a total value of 20,678 million quetzals. The mostpopular denomination is the 100 quetzal note, accounting for 86% of allthe notes in circulation (see accompanying graph).

Counterfeiting of Guatemalan banknotes has fallen in recent years, primar-ily as a result of the incorporation of new security features such asSPARK, for example. In 2009 the Banco de Guatemala seized 2,718counterfeit banknotes, of which 1,458 were of the 100 quetzal denomina-tion. As a result, it is estimated that eight notes per million in circulationare counterfeits.

Features of the 100 quetzal note

The new 100 quetzal note was brought into circulation on 30 October2009. The Banco de Guatemala does not have a printing works of itsown, so the notes are manufactured outside the country.

Design

The 100 quetzal note is the country’s most emblematic banknote. It is thehighest denomination note and has the strongest security features. It isthe first banknote to be put in circulation in Latin America to use the opti-cally variable SPARK ink.

The main features of the design on the obverse of the note are the follow-ing:

■ Along the top is the text “BANCO DE GUATEMALA” and“GUATEMALA, CENTROAMÉRICA” and the denomination in numberformat.

■ To the right there is an intaglio-printed portrait of Guatemala’s bishopFrancisco Marroquín, who defended the rights of Guatemala’s indigen-ous peoples during the colonial period and founded of a college.

■ In the centre of the note the denomination is printed in figures andwords, together with the banknote series and number.

■ At the bottom are the signatures of the general manager and the presi-dent of the Banco de Guatemala.

■ At the left there is an image of a Mayan figure, together with a quetzal,the national bird, and the see-through register.

The reverse of the note includes the following features:

■ The legend “BANCO DE GUATEMALA” printed at the top, with thedenomination in number form.

■ An image of the interior of the University of San Carlos Borromeo, in thecity of Antigua Guatemala in the centre. This university was founded in1676 by a Royal Decree issued by Charles II of Spain on the conditionthat it should remain under his patronage and protection. It was thefourth university to be created in America.

■ Right of centre there is an image of a Mayan figure, with a see-throughregister.

Statistical data as at 31.12.2009 Quetzals Euros

Value of banknotes in circulation (in millions) 20,678.2 1,718.8

Average value of banknotes in circulation 43.2 3.6

Number of banknotes in circulation (in millions) 478.3

Banknotes in circulation per inhabitant 36.0

Value of the banknotes in circulation as a fraction of GDP 6.8%

Printing techniques

■ Intaglio: applied both on the obverse and reverse. On the obverse themain personality, the pyramid in the background, the main decoration,the large text, the denomination in Arabic and Mayan numerals and inwords, the authorising signatures and date, are all printed using intaglio.Data from late 2009

Guatemalan Banknotes

Banknotes and Coins


On the reverse, the structure in the foreground, the allegorical table, andthe banknote denomination in Arabic numerals are also printed inintaglio.

■ Offset lithography: used for the rainbow security backgrounds on theobverse and reverse and for the Guatemalan flag used as the see-through register.

■ Letterpress: used for the serial numbers shown on the obverse.

■ Screen printing: with optically variable ink to print the SPARK securityfeature.

Security features for the public

■ Watermark: when the note is held up against the light, the image of themain figure, bishop and graduate Francisco Marroquín, and the number100 in Arabic and Mayan numerals, can be seen.

■ Security thread: window thread with the microtext “BANCO DEGUATEMALA 100” and a three-dimensional hologram which, when theangle is changed, reveals Mayan figures, the letters “BG” and the num-ber 100 in Arabic and Mayan numerals.

■ Optically variable ink: when the note is tilted, a dynamic effect occurswhereby the blue colour changes to green.

■ Blind embossing: on the obverse in gold, reacting to ultraviolet light,

and coinciding exactly with the design on the reverse that forms theframe for the register between the two sides of the note.

■ Triplex see-through register: in the quetzal, the bird which is thenational symbol.

■ See-through register: when held up against the light the Guatemalanflag on the front can be seen to coincide with an identical image on theback.

■ Microtext: the text “BANCO DE GUATEMALA” is printed repeatedly inminute letters in positive and negative on the front, and the text“BANCO DE GUATEMALA CIEN QUETZALES” is printed around theallegorical table on the back.

■ Visible fibres: in red and blue.

■ Security background: over the whole surface on the obverse andreverse, including multiple colours to give a rainbow effect.

Technical Characteristics

Substrate 100% cotton fibre paper

Substrate weight 95 g/m2

Dimensions 156 x 67 mm

Dominant colour Sepia

Note: The number shown beside each of the security features of the 100 quetzal banknote refers to the numbering given to each feature on the “Banknote security features” pages in theMiscellaneous section, where a more detailed description of each security feature can be found.

100 QUETZAL NOTE

4. Window thread 18. Coloured fibres

16. Microprinting

12. Optically variable ink (OVI)

22. Rainbow printing

20. See-throughregister

20. Triplex see-throughregister

1. Multitone watermark

9 and 11. Latent imagewith iridescent ink

22. Rainbow printing


The Banco Central de Nicaragua’sTreasury Subdirectorate

Guillermo Selva Banco Central de Nicaragua

The Banco Central de Nicaragua’s Treasury Subdirectorate

Banknotes and Coins

Organisation and functions

The Banco Central de Nicaragua’s Treasury Subdirectorate forms part ofthe bank’s Finance Directorate. Its responsibilities include, among otherthings, cash management and managing the payment systems.

In order to fulfil these functions, the Treasury Subdirectorate has a staff of30 employees, thus accounting for 5.5% of the bank’s total permanentworkforce. It is subdivided into three functional areas: the OperationsDepartment, Payment Systems Department and the Issue and CustodyDepartment.

current account services for the government and financial institutions.These functions entail the following tasks:

■ Managing the administration of current accounts held at the BancoCentral de Nicaragua by the public sector, financial institutions andinternational organisations under the central bank’s framework law, res-olutions of the bank’s Executive Council and other specific agreements.

■ Providing a cash counter service, changing banknotes for notes of otherdenominations, replacing worn or damaged notes and coins, takingdeposits from public entities and paying cheques issued by the bank.

Payment Systems Department

This department is responsible for implementing and coordinating thewhole inter-bank liquidity market, and the system of electronic fundstransfers. It is also responsible for coordinating payment-systems mod-ernisation. Its main functions are:

■ Coordinating and promoting the modernisation of payment systems atnational and regional levels (clearing house and electronic funds trans-fers, among others).

■ Establishing and strengthening the links between the users participating inpayment systems, in order to ensure continuity in the face of systemic risks.

■ Proposing, updating and implementing tariff standards and proceduresrelating to the payment systems modules.

Issue and Custody Department

This department is responsible for safeguarding, monitoring and reportingon deposits of banknotes, coins and documents held in the bank’s vaults,supplying banks with cash, as well as processing cash (counting, sortingand destruction). Specifically, its main functions are:

■ Safeguarding, monitoring and reporting on stocks of cash, securities,commemorative coins and other valuables that are stored in the centralbank’s vaults.

■ Providing a cash service in the national currency (including meetingpreferences for denominations) and in foreign currency, for banks andother financial institutions.

■ Processing (authenticating, counting and sorting) cash deposited withthe bank and currency handled in other cash operations.

■ Proposing and executing the programme for the destruction of damagedand worn banknotes and coins. On-line destruction is not performed.

■ Preparing, analysing and presenting statistics on the issue, circulationand destruction of notes and coins.

■ Issuing opinions on the authenticity of banknotes and preparing statis-tics on banknote counterfeiting.

In 2010 the Banco Central de Nicaragua is celebrating the50th anniversary of its foundation. Nicaragua’s CentralBank is a functionally autonomous national institution cre-ated with unlimited duration and its own assets and legalpersonality. Its Head Office is located in Managua, the cap-ital of the Republic of Nicaragua, and it is from there that itmeets the country’s cash requirements. Until a few yearsago the bank had three regional branches to meet demandfor cash in the cities of León, Matagalpa and Estelí. Thesebranches were closed down over the period from 2003 and2006 so as to reduce operating costs, and in particular thecost of cash transport and safeguarding deposits. The cashdistribution function was handed over to national commer-cial banks. Along with the main office, only the branch in thecity of León is used as a reserve vault. Nicaragua’s centralbank does not have its own printing works or mint, so it pur-chases notes and coins from companies of recognisedinternational standing with which it has contracts awardedthrough calls for tender.

Operations Department

This department is responsible for handling deposits and payments toand from the public and financial institutions at its counters, for keepingstatistical and accounting records of cash operations and for running


The Banco Central de Nicaragua’s Treasury Subdirectorate

Banknotes and Coins

Issue of a new banknote family in 2009

In 2009 the Banco Central de Nicaragua launched a new series of bank-notes which introduced the polymer substrate for the first time. The newsubstrate is used in three denominations in the family, the two lowestvalue denominations (10 and 20 córdobas) and a new high value denomi-nation note (200 córdobas). Notes of the remaining three denominations(50, 100 and 500 córdobas) continue to be manufactured using a cottonpaper substrate.

Another important element introduced in the new series was the differ-ence in the size of note in each of the denominations. Thus, each notehas a different length, although the height is the same in all cases. Thissystem makes it harder to counterfeit the notes while at the same timehelping the visually impaired distinguish each denomination by its size.

In order to publicise the features of the new banknotes

Premises of the Banco Central de Nicaragua / Banco Central de Nicaragua

Statistical data1

Banknotes in circulation 2006 2007 2008 2009

– Value 4,716.9 6,245.1 6,361.4 7,678.4– Units 53.4 56.2 47.0 71.2

Banknotes withdrawn by the central bank

– Value 12,061.4 17,170.7 23,234.0 22,248.4– Units 83.0 103.2 116.7 133.1

Banknote deposits with the central bank

– Value 12,082.4 15,908.2 23,299.3 21,698.3– Units 90.8 106.9 129.9 113.7

Banknotes processed by the central bank

– Value 13,494.9 15,744.3 22,847.3 24,804.4– Units 117.22 110.0 129.5 125.2

Banknotes destroyed by the central bank

– Value 2,268.6 1,909.9 1,154.0 2,996.2– Units 50.9 31.2 27.7 41.7

Percentage destruction2 43 28 21 33

1. Values in millions of córdobas; units are millions of notes.2. Percentage destruction = damaged or destroyed banknotes / banknotes processed.

lation. The most widely counterfeited notes are high denominations,where the counterfeiting rate rises to 45.2 per million in the case of 500córdoba notes and 24.8 in the case of 100 córdoba notes.

Currency sorting

One of the biggest challenges faced by the Banco Central de Nicaragua’sTreasury Subdirectorate is meeting the growing demand for currencysorting and to avoid backlogs of banknotes for counting and damagednotes for destruction building up.

In 2009, to meet the increase in demand for currency processing, thebank decided to purchase a high-speed note-sorting machine (withcapacity for over a hundred thousand banknotes an hour). When themachine is operating at full capacity, the bank aims to double the avail-able processing capacity. This will have a positive impact on the availabili-ty of reserves, the quality of banknotes in circulation and the detection ofcounterfeit notes. Banknotes are currently processed using four BPS200sorting machines.

Future plans

In 2010, to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the founding of the BancoCentral de Nicaragua, the issue of a new commemorative banknote isplanned, along with the minting of commemorative coins. The new note,which will be legal tender, will have a denomination of 50 córdobas andbe produced using a polymer substrate.

Over the coming years the Treasury Subdirectorate of the Banco Centralde Nicaragua expects to increase the level of automation of its cash serv-ices and boost its currency processing capacity.

and thereby help combat counterfeiting, the Banco Cen-tral de Nicaragua ran a series of communication andtraining campaigns directed at financial institutions, thepolice, retailers and the general public.

In 2010, drawing on the experience gained from the cir-culation of the new notes, the behaviour of the polymersubstrate was evaluated to assess its durability and per-formance in currency-handling equipment. The resultsobtained will determine what course to following in futureissues.

Combating counterfeiting

In order to fight counterfeiting, the Banco Central deNicaragua constantly reviews the design of its bank-notes, incorporating new and more advanced securityfeatures in each issue so as to make them harder tocounterfeit. It also runs information campaigns so thatthe public is aware of and can recognise the security fea-tures the banknotes incorporate.

Security features that have been used in Nicaragua’sbanknotes include watermarks, holographic strips, iri-descent strips, optically variable ink, security threads,complex and transparent windows (in polymer notes),perfect register images, fluorescent inks, infrared inksand microprinting.

In recent years, the rate of counterfeiting in Nicaraguahas averaged 12.5 counterfeits per million notes in circu-


Features of low-denomination banknotes

Cash has to fulfil a triple function to meet today’s requirements and main-tain its predominant position as a means of payment. In particular, cashmust ensure public confidence, provide security against counterfeiting,and achieve cost reductions.

In addition to these factors, banknote manufacturers also need to intro-duce features in their products that facilitate the verification of theirauthenticity, their selection and efficient cash management. End-to-endcash solutions, taking in the whole cycle from manufacture through todestruction, are therefore essential.

Low-denomination banknotes have a series of specific characteristicswhich set them apart from medium- and high-denomination notes. Forinstance, the substrate does not last as long in the case of low-denomina-tion notes, as they are passed from hand to hand more often. In general,their average lifespan is a year or less. Moreover, their anti-counterfeitingsecurity features are simpler, as counterfeiters tend to alter low-denomi-nation notes just one technological process, as it is cheaper.

Together with these characteristics it is necessary for low-denominationnotes to be sorted automatically, even when very worn or soiled. Theircost of manufacture must be substantially lower than their face value,otherwise it would be better to encourage the use of coins, as for thesame cost, they would remain in circulation for many years.

Different types of substrate

Nowadays, a whole range of solutions for low-denomination banknotes isavailable in terms of the choice of substrate and security features. First ofall, there is the use of cotton paper, which is the most commonly usedsubstrate for banknote manufacture. Secondly, there is polymer, use ofwhich is growing. Finally, there is so-called durable paper, which consistsof a paper substrate combined with polymer or a special coating (coatedpaper, paper with a polymer layer, paper with polymer inside, paper withsynthetic fibres, etc.). This is a recent solution, but has been adopted by asignificant number of countries.

Each of the afore-mentioned substrates has its advantages and disad-vantages:

■ Cotton paper is the traditional choice for low-denomination banknotes.This choice of substrate offers a considerable number of clear advan-tages such as ease of recognition by the public, the existence of a set ofsecurity features that have been developed for paper, and low produc-tion costs. The main drawback is the short lifetime in circulation ofpaper banknotes.

■ Polymer is a durable substrate that gives banknotes a long useful life-time, substantially longer than that of paper banknotes. Nevertheless,polymer has a number of limitations, particularly as regards the incorpo-

Factory sounds / Y. Barrera

Manufacturing low-denomination banknotes


Manufacturing low-denomination banknotes

Georgy Kornilov Goznak

Banknotes today remain the mostreliable and commonly used meansof payment. The number of transac-tions settled in cash continues togrow, particularly in the case ofmedium-value purchases, which areoften paid for using low-denomina-tion banknotes. The long tradition ofbanknotes as a means of payment isthe result of their constant adapta-tion to the new challenges which thecurrency in circulation has to face.


Front of the low-denomination banknote used for tests / Goznak

19Manufacturing low-denomination banknotes


ration of traditional security features. It also requires that the publicbecome familiar with the use of notes manufactured from this materialand their production cost is higher.

■ Substrates based on modified paper combine the advantages of paperand polymer. They are recyclable and their useful lifetime is longer. More-over, most traditional security features can be used with substrates ofthis type. These materials are easily recognised by the public and theirproduction cost is not substantially greater than that of conventionalpaper. These substrates are a good choice for the manufacture low-denomination notes in particular, and the outlook for their use is good.

Banknotes printed on modified paper

Goznak has worked on improving modified paper-based substrates whilepreserving their two main advantages, namely high security and low cost. Aspecimen banknote has been developed to achieve dimensional optimisa-tion, improvement of the substrate and creation of a set of security fea-tures based on traditional technologies, while at the same time, trying tokeep the cost of manufacture acceptably priced for a low denominationbanknote. With this specimen banknote we achieved an improvement inthe durability of the paper using traditional paper rollers and no radicallynew solutions were applied.

■ The banknote size was reduced to 52 x 114 mm. This encouragesmore efficient use of paper, as between 20% and 40% less paper isneeded for each note. This smaller size is not a problem, given that lowdenomination notes require fewer security features. Processing of thebanknotes in sorting machines was also tested.

■ Longer cotton fibres were used to manufacture the paper, so as togive it more strength and rigidity.

■ The notes were coated by applying a water-based coating before print-ing so as to improve their resistance to soiling. Coated and uncoatedbanknotes were produced and tests performed on them demonstratingthe improved anti-soiling characteristics of the coated notes.

The conclusion reached was that the longer fibres, smaller note size andcoating the paper surface offered a more durable solution. At the sametime, except for the surface coating, no substantial changes in the papermanufacturing technology were required, and no additional equipmentwas necessary. These factors enabled the cost of the substrate to bekept down.

Security features of low denomination notes

The security requirements of low-denomination notes differ from those ofhigher denominations. As the authenticity of low-denomination notes tendsnot to be checked as carefully in transactions as those of high denomina-tion notes, a dual approach needs to be taken to the security features oflow denominations. Firstly, all the security features must be readily verifiableby the public without the need for special verification devices. At the sametime, the notes need to include security features that cannot be imitatedwith a single technical process. This is because, if counterfeiters have toapply a variety of processes to copy a note, it is not profitable for them todo so. Finally, the security features must not be based on materials or tech-nologies that give rise to a note with a high final cost.

The security features most appropriate for the public which can be manu-factured using traditional equipment, while using new technologies andimprovements in the manufacturing process, are the following:

■ Watermark. It is quick and simple for both the public and cashiers toverify banknote authenticity by holding the note up against the light andlooking at the watermark. This must be readily distinguishable and it isworth noting that the fine lines and shadows do not play the most impor-tant role. The best options are multi-tone and electrotype water marks.

■ Moiré variable colour (MVC) is a feature that has been incorporated inRussian banknotes for many years. It is based on a combination of off-set printing and inkless intaglio printing (blind embossing). The result isan area that looks uniformly printed but in which rainbow effect stripescan be seen when the note is tilted. This is an efficient security featureswhich does not increase the cost of the banknote and does not requireany additional manufacturing processes. MVC can be complemented


Cash Activities and TechnologyManufacturing low-denomination banknotes

with a latent image and ultraviolet fluorescence, turning it into an inte-grated element with different security levels.

■ MVC+ is a more advanced version of MVC which was also used inspecimen banknote production. This feature comprises two parts: Onepart presents rainbow stripes which can be seen with the note tilted atany angle and the other has strips visible only when the note is tilted at aparticular angle. Both types of stripe have perfect register and form thesame pattern, which facilitates the verification process as the two partscan be compared and observed when the note is tilted.

■ Combination of inked intaglio with inkless intaglio (embossing).This feature presents two clearly distinctive traits: One printed in intagliorelief and the other embossed. The two printed features have perfectregister, generated in a single process, something which is out of reachto conventional counterfeiters. The register in the embossed zones andthe printed zones is highly visible with reflected light and does requirethe use of any special device for its verification. Moreover, this featuredoes not require any change in printing technology, as it uses onlyintaglio printing, which is part of the banknote manufacturing process.

In addition to the public security features described above, the securityfeatures used for low-denomination banknotes should include someforensic and machine-readable features, such as:

■ Two dimensional iris printing (2D-Iris). The 2D-Iris is the outcome of col-laboration between Goznak and the Swiss banknote printing machine

manufacturer KBA-Giori. Unlike simple iris printing, two-dimensionalprinting produces a gradual or accentuated transition of the colour inany direction and offers a high degree of protection against counterfeit-ing while using offset printing. Two-dimensional iris printing requires acertain amount of modernisation of the printing machinery.

■ The combination of conventional ultraviolet properties with MVC con-stitutes a good supplement to a banknote’s set of security features. Theappearance of MVC colour bands is highly visible with ultraviolet light, whichprovides an additional option for cashiers and professional cash handlers.

Two-dimensional iris print-ing / Goznak Watermark / Goznak

■ The security fibres which vary in thickness and which have zones ofdifferent colours are a highly effective forensic security feature.

Con clusion

In comparison with high-denomination banknotes, low-denominationnotes should be more durable and have simpler and less expensive se-curity features. In particular, it is possible to argue for a note formatwith a smaller printed surface, on more durable paper thanks to someof its enhanced technical characteristics, incorporating a set of securityfeatures based on the use of conventional printing techniques, comple-mented by the use of special materials such as optically variable inksand holograms. This approach enables paper durability to beimproved, ensuring the circulation of banknotes with sufficient securityagainst counterfeits while keeping manufacturing costs within reason-able limits.

21Digital master die manufacturing system


Digital master die manufacturing system

Víctor Feijoo Real Casa de la Moneda-Fábrica Nacional de Moneda y Timbre (RCM-FNMT)

The development of a digital system forthe manufacture of master dies withwhich to produce the dies used to mintcoins represented a big step forward interms of the technology used to designand produce coins at the SpanishNational Mint and Printing Works (RCM-FNMT). The digital system for producingmaster dies described in this article wasdesigned and developed by the RCM-FNMT’s Coinage Department in a projectlasting three years.

Commemorative coin dedicated to Leopoldo Alas “Clarín” / RCM-FNMT

This rendered image of the coin dedicated toLeopoldo Alas “Clarín” is an example of coindesign using a digital system. Multi-layerpreparation and the machining of vertical sur-faces bordering the relief facilitates subse-quent work. Furthermore, as a proof-qualitycommemorative coin, with a face value of 8reals, this coin posed some special challenges,but was made possible thanks to the extraengraving features offered by digital systems.


Some definitions • Master die: Extremely hard cylindrical tool with a positive, raised fig-ure engraved on its upper surface, which is used to imprint this fig-ure onto the die used to make coins or medals by applying pressureor striking it.

• Die: Mould engraved with the inverse (negative) of the image, whichis used to produce coins and medals.

• Planchet: Metal used as the basic raw material onto which the diestamps the image. A coin or medal is made by stamping theplanchet with the die.

Advantages of the new digital system

The digital process has demonstrated that it can replace the traditionalanalogue pantograph-process and that if offers substantial improvementsin the design and machining of dies. The main advantages that it offersare:

■ The engraver’s work can be limited to the two-dimensional design andartistic relief. The image and relief composition system allows thedesigner’s artistic design to be integrated with the computer-generatedgeometric design. Moreover, digitisations can be retrieved from a histor-ical archive using a process of digital adaptation.

■ The system allows image composition and relief creation by means oftransversal cuts which are not possible with the traditional system. Thecomplex designs that the digital system can generate can be machineddirectly on the milling machine to obtain the master die.

■ The new approach simplifies the die manufacture process. The sixsteps in the traditional process are reduced to three in the digital one.

■ It ensures the work is repeatable. The files with the digital information onthe artistic design and with the geometric design can be reproducedfaithfully as many times as necessary.

■ Storing designs in computer files means it is no longer necessary tokeep physical parts. The electronic files with all the information requiredto produce the master dies is all that needs to be stored.

Project phases

1. System design

The system design phase consisted of looking for and selecting the mostadvanced surface analysis, digitisation and computerised information pro-cessing technology. Prior to the digital system, surface analysis was per-formed using a traditional analogue technique which measured a smallnumber of points on the surface to be engraved.

2. Selecting and installing the master die machining equipment

Development of this phase consisted of selecting and installing machiningequipment (milling machine) offering higher performance than given by tra-ditional pantographs. The selected machining unit turns the digital informa-tion supplied by the design equipment into mechanical actions guiding ahead which automatically engraves the surface of the master die. The sys-tem incorporates the latest advances in the precision machining of sur-faces. The engraving head reaches a speed of 60,000 revolutions a minuteand is able to machine details of 0.001 mm in relief on the die surface.

Configuration of the digital master die production system

Producing the master die involves three interconnected networked sys-tems:

■ A laser digitising system for information capture. This generates a com-puter file with the coordinates (x, y, z) of each of the points on the die tobe engraved.

■ A computerised image and relief composition system. This is a high per-formance system, with specific programming (ArtCAM, Artread,Artshade, Artifex, Finish Designer), enabling three dimensional maps tobe made of the engraving surface, image composition, creation of spe-cial reliefs and retouching of images. This generates a computer file withthe orders to transmit to the machining system.

■ Surface machining system which engraves the die using an automaticmilling machine controlled by orders received from the computer sys-tem with the information on the images and reliefs.

Cash Activities and TechnologyPatenting of new banknote security features

The banknote industry has undergone profound changes inthe last few decades. A fundamental driver of the revitalisa-tion of the world of banknotes has been the tremendousincrease in demand for new security features to tackle therisk of counterfeiting. However, only a limited number offirms in the industry producing security features are in aposition to undertake or collaborate on lengthy and costlyresearch programmes. Thus, unlike the case of watermarksor intaglio printing, new security features are not commonproperty which can be put into widespread use. Instead,they belong exclusively to patent applicants, who conse-quently own the rights to them.

Obviously, this situation has profoundly changed the eco-nomics of the banknote supply chain and the relationshipswithin it. Nowadays, all research and development pro-grammes for new security features lead to patent applica-tions, in contrast to the way the industry behaved twenty

years ago, when everything to do with security features waskept secret so as not to reveal any information to potentialcounterfeiters. Today, the redistribution of activities along thesupply chain has meant that researchers seek to protect theirintellectual property rights in order to guarantee a financialreturn on their activity.

At the same time, applying for intellectual property rightsmeans revealing the technological innovation and, therefore,giving away information even at the early stages of projectdevelopment. Thus, attentive observers of patent registeringactivity have an ideal opportunity to follow new trends in thetechnology. Monitoring developments in this way gives anidea of the new security features that are being developed,long before they appear on the market, and thus what thesecurity features of the future will be. It is therefore of greatinterest both to central banks and to other professionalscompeting to develop security features.

Patenting of new banknote security features

Maurice Perron Former director at the Banque de France

Patent analysis

Patent analysis makes it possible to get an idea of the state of the technol-ogy areas of interest, their scope, the stage various projects have reachedand what companies are carrying out research. This is very interestingwork, which requires close attention, resources and time. At this point it isworth mentioning some of the difficulties that can be faced when analysingpatents. First of all, in order to spot emerging trends it is necessary to havean overview of the field as a whole, which means that patents need to beanalysed over a long period. Moreover, it needs to be borne in mind that apatent’s definition is not always clear cut, and its classification by the keywords that describe it may be confusing and require a degree of interpre-tation. Finally, it needs to be remembered that the information is only pub-lished 18 months after the patent application was filed.

A number of international patent databases exist, such as Esp@cenet,WIPO, etc., which include information about patents of this kind. In partic-ular, the HONNORAT database, which focuses on secure documentpatents and uses an appropriate classification method, is a valuablesource of information.

In any patent analysis exercise, it is first of all necessary to review the var-ious technology areas of interest, by searching the databases for a varietyof key words. On this point it is worth noting that in order for queries toreturn useful results it is necessary to choose a keyword that is neither toogeneric nor too specific. Moreover, it needs to be borne in mind that eachdatabase may use different key words for the same patent description.

Fields of interest and trends

According to the HONNORAT database, at the end of 2008 there wereapproximately 8,000 secure document patents. As table 1 shows, thetrend is upward, with more than a thousand new patents a year.

Table 1. Development of patent numbers

2005 2006 2007 2008

Number of patents 4,450 5,400 6,500 7,900Annual growth (%) – 18.7 20.3 21.5

However, these data should be interpreted with caution, as these data-bases frequently include new key words each year, referencing patentsalready registered in previous years. The estimated figures, after correct-ing for this effect, suggest that real growth in patent numbers could beapproximately 15% a year.

Table 2. Breakdown of patents by technology areas %

Technology Area Importance relative Averageto the total annual growth

Paper security 11 12Foil – optically variable devices 9 21Luminescence 7 15Optically active inks 3 14Magnetism 2 12Data encoding 5 n/aCurrency verification and validation 10 18

The table 2 gives the figures for traditional technologies, which representalmost half (47%) of all the patents in the database. The average annualgrowth of the seven technology areas covered is around 18%, which indi-cates that these mechanisms will continue to play a major role in thedevelopment of secure documents in the future. It is worth highlightingthat there continues to be rapid growth in areas such as paper securityand magnetism, which show no signs of decline or saturation, althoughthe rate of growth has fallen below the mean.


23Patenting of new banknote security features


The potential of innovation

The potential for innovation in the various technology areas can also beevaluated by measuring the interest generated by patents among the var-ious research and development teams. To assess this, an analysis of thenumbers of both patents and applicants is useful.

■ The percentage of activity of the main applicants is an indicator of thetechnology’s degree of concentration and the existence of a dominantposition. A high percentage indicates greater concentration and reflectsa mature technology with a stable market.

■ The number of patents per applicant is a reflection of how manyresearch teams are interested in an area. This figure is small when thereare few patents and a lot of research teams actively interested in thefield.

The weight of the main applicants in traditional areas of interest is 45% ofpatents, on average, compared with an average of 34% of patents regis-tered in the database as a whole. This indicates that, as a rule, thesetechnologies are in just a few hands, in a market that is stable and rela-tively uncompetitive, particularly in areas such as paper security, foils andmagnetism. The highest percentage concentration is in the case of secu-rity threads.

However, some technologies are open to new entrants, as is demonstrat-ed by the large number of patent applications. This means that it wouldbe possible for specific projects to be run by unknown agents in the sec-tor, such as in the case of optically active inks and luminescence. The fig-ures for magnetism and foil technologies indicate that, despite the level ofconcentration, there are also many unknown researchers working in thefield.

The future of document security

Intellectual property rights are a key factor in the future of secure docu-ments, in a context that is characterised by increasing deregulation andopenness to creativity from non-traditional sources.

Analysis of patent applications provides extremely useful informationabout technology trends and the outlook for the security features of thefuture. Evaluation of patent registrations shows that the main researchand development teams are focusing their efforts on the traditional tech-nologies used in the secure document industry, and in particular, onbanknote manufacture, which is high conservative.

There is still a lot of room for new technologies in the banknote field. Pre-dicting which security features are likely to be most successful in thefuture calls for a detailed analysis, which takes time and effort.

Table 3. Degree of patent concentration

Technology Area Percentage of patents held Number of patents perby the 10 main applicants as applicant, excluding the

a share of the total 10 main patent holders

Paper security 56 2.2Embedded threads 71 n/aFoil – optically variable devices 54 1.4Luminescence 32 2.0Optically active inks 49 1.2Magnetism 54 1.1Currency verification and validation 38 1.4

Average 45 1.7



CIGEVII International Course on Cash Management

The 2010 International Course on Cash Management (CIGE in its Spanishinitials), will be taking place in Rio de Janeiro during the week of 16 to 21May. It is being organised by the Banco Central do Brasil, which has kind-ly offered to host this 7th edition of the event. All Latin American centralbanks have been invited to send a participant to attend the course.

The course’s academic approach will be similar to that in previous years,with the first three days being devoted to the basic course content:

■ Banknote design and origination. ■ Procurement and manufacture of cash. ■ Monetary income.■ Currency transport, distribution and safekeeping. ■ Security. ■ Cash lodgements and withdrawals. ■ Sorting of used banknotes. ■ Destruction. ■ Combating counterfeiting. ■ Communication.

The course will include theoretical sessions led by experts from variouscountries, and practical sessions, where topics will be put forward fordiscussion and debate so as to promote an exchange of central banks’knowledge, experience and technological innovations in relation to themanagement and handling of cash.

The last day is left open for the participants to discuss a topic of generalinterest.

The Banco Central do Brasil has also scheduled visits to the facilities ofits Cash Department (Departamento de Meio Circulante, Mecir) and theBrazilian National Mint (Casa da Moeda do Brasil).

The course will be given in Brazilian Portuguese and Spanish, with simul-taneous translation. For information about the 7th CIGE, contact:

Banco Central do Brasil Departamento de Meio Circulante del Banco Central do Brasil E-mail: [email protected] Tel.: + 55 21 2253 0225 / 2189 6237 Fax: + 55 21 2516 1270

CIGE Technical SecretariatCash and Issue Department, Banco de EspañaE-mail: [email protected] Tel.: +34 91 338 6310 / 7091 Fax: +34 91 338 6887

People / JDN


The “Banknotes of the world” cat-alogue, which is part of the “Cur-rencies of the World’s Nations”series, has been published byIntercrim-Press every two yearssince 2002 and has rapidlybecome the standard referencework on banknotes issued aroundthe world. The biennial catalogueis complemented by the publica-tion of a monthly bulletin, “Bank-notes of the world: Currency Cir-culation”, which gives a monthlyupdate on the main novelties in thesubject. Both publications, the cat-alogue and monthly bulletin, aredistributed in print form in Russianand English versions and are bothapproved by the Russian CentralBank and the Russian Interior Min-istry’s Analysis Centre.

The latest edition of the catalogue,covering 2009-2010, offers infor-mation on the main banknotesissued in over 250 countries andterritories, including many that areno longer in circulation, with colour

Publications devoted to cash

This publication by the Banco dePortugal, commemorating the160th anniversary of the Bank’sfoundation, describes the Por-tuguese Central Bank’s extensivecoin collection. Coins with historyis the first of a two volume setdescribing the coins held by theBank and covers the very earliest

coins down to those from the 17thcentury. The second volume,which is due out soon, will coverthe period from the 17th centuryto the present day. The publica-tion was produced with the col-laboration of Maria Gracia DiasMarques, history professor at theLisbon Autonomous University.

The coins included in the publica-tion can also be seen in the per-manent exhibition at the Banco dePortugal’s museum. The book,which is written in English, is 58pages long and can be consulted atwww.bportugal.pt

Publications devoted to cash

Miscellaneous

BANKNOTES of the world 2009-2010

COINS with history

Publication by the National Bank of Romania, in collaboration with theEuropean Central Bank (ECB), to mark the ECB’s exhibition of Romaniannotes and coins in 2009. The book describes the notes and coins used inRomania both today and in the past. The publication includes colour pho-tographs of all the notes and coins referred to, with images showing boththe front and reverse of each. The book is 232 pages long and publishedin a bilingual English-German edition. It can be obtained from www.bnr.roand www.ecb.europa.eu

Romanian Money and Securities History and iconography

images of the front and reverse ofeach note and details of the mainsecurity features. Special referenceis made to banknotes printed onpolymer substrates, so as to differ-entiate them better from the others.The information in the cataloguecomes from the Russian FinanceMinistry, the Russian Interior Min-istry’s Analysis Centre, the CentralBank of Russia and Germany’sinternational coin identification serv-ice, as well as a number of com-mercial banks. The publishers havetaken care to present only informa-tion supplied by issuing banks, soas to guarantee the rigour and relia-bility of the information published.

Readers might also be interestedto know that the final pages of thecatalogue include an illustrated listof fourteen banknote security fea-tures, which is very similar to thatgiven at the end of BILLETARIA.

Information and subscriptions:www.icpress.ru.


Central banking news

Miscellaneous

On 23 September 2009 the Bancode México began the launch of twonew banknotes. These new 200peso and 100 peso notes cele-brate the bicentenary of the start ofthe Independence movement in1810 and the centenary of theMexican Revolution of 1910,respectively. The issue of thesecommemorative notes will be limit-ed to 50 million units of eachdenomination.

The 200 peso note is manufac-tured using security paper and theimages are printed vertically, while

the 100 peso note is printed on apolymer substrate. The securityfeatures of both notes can be con-sulted on the Banco de México’swebsite(www.banxico.org.mx).

Central banking news

In 2009 the Deustche Bundesbank published a study on the functioningof the payments system in Germany. One of its conclusions was thatcash remains Germany’s most commonly used means of payment,accounting for 83% of all transactions taking place in the country, and58% of total transaction value. The study will be repeated in the future toanalyse how the variables examined vary over time.

Front of the 200 peso commemorative note, manufactured in paper /Banco de México

The Banco de Méxicoissues two commemorative notes

Cash payments in Germany

Front of the new 2,000 guaraní banknote / Banco Central del Paraguay

Paraguay issues polymer banknotes The Banco Central del Paraguay officially launched a new 2,000 guaraníbanknote in 2009. The new note is manufactured using a polymer sub-strate and is intended to improve security to hamper counterfeitingattempts and extend its useful life. The banknote has been presented withthe motto ‘a country progresses through education’, alluding to the twosisters, Adela and Celsa Speratti, pioneers in teacher training, to whomthe notes pay homage. The central bank’s President, Jorge Raúl Cor-valán, said that the new issue sought to fill a gap in low-denominationnotes, and thus facilitate small value financial transactions, particularlythose for amounts of between 1,000 and 5,000 guaraníes.

Front of the 100 peso commemorative note,manufactured in polymer /

Banco de México


27Central banking news

Miscellaneous

1,000 tenge banknote / BILLETARIA

The National Bank of Kazakhstan issues a windowedcommemorative banknoteIn January 2010 the National Bankof Kazakhstan issued a 1,000tenge note to commemorate theKazak chairmanship of the Organi-sation for Security and Coopera-tion in Europe in 2010. The bank-note’s security features include atransparent window with three-dimensional images of a cameland the letter “k” on its surface.When the banknote is tilted theseimages move as if they were float-

ing. The transparent window isintegrated with a holographic stripwhich is applied to the front of thebanknote. The other security fea-tures of the new note include opti-cally variable ink (OVI), a colour-changing windowed strip, a latentimage (PEAK), and intaglio printingwith a gradual colour change onthe front.

Participants in the first meeting of central bank GS1 users for cash operations / Banque de France

First meeting of the group of central banks using GS1standards for cash operations

meeting, together with the Deutsche Bundesbank and the Banco deEspaña. The aim of setting up this group of GS1-promoter central bankswas to create an informal forum for an exchange of experience on the useof standards and information and to offer support to other central banks,which as potential users, were invited to the event in view of their possibleadoption of GS1 standards in the future.

Recently, the cash departments of several central banks in the Eurosys-tem (the event’s three organisers plus Banca d’Italia) jointly expressedtheir intention to use GS1 standards when communicating cash oper-ations to their clients and when exchanging banknotes with other centralbanks. The cash activity of the group of four central banks involvedtogether accounts for more than 80% of the total in the Eurozone.

The event was attended by experts from the cash and information tech-nologies areas of nine central banks in the Eurozone, the ECB, and GS1Europe and GS1 France organisations. The next meeting will be held inMadrid in October 2010.

On 13 and 14 January 2010 the first meeting of the group of centralbanks using GS1 standards for cash operations was held in Strasbourg.The meeting was organised by the Banque de France, which hosted the

New 20 lempirabanknote / BancoCentral de Honduras

On 12 January 2010 the Banco Central de Honduras put into circulation anew 20 lempira banknote with a polymer substrate. The total issue will be60 million units. The 20 lempira denomination was chosen for the polymerissue as it is the widest circulation note and consequently that which suf-fers most wear and tear.

The new polymer substrate banknote has the same design as the currentpaper note. However, being a polymer note it includes a transparent win-dow, which is a characteristic security feature of banknotes produced ona polymer substrate. The window also includes a G-Switch colour switch-ing feature. The size of the national shield, which is located on the left-sideof the front, has also been changed to make it smaller. It also incorpo-rates a special identification feature for the visually impaired consisting ofa triangle printed in relief. The note contains the other security featurestypical of paper notes, such as the watermark, security thread, micro-printing, intaglio printing, perfect register and latent image, etc.

Previous issues of this denomination of banknote will continue in circula-tion and will be accepted at their face value. No time limit has been setand there is no obligation to exchange banknotes in the old series for newones. The Banco Central de Honduras will monitor the public acceptanceof the banknotes and their durability and security with a view to subse-quent introduction of polymer-based banknotes in other denominations.

New polymer 20 lempira note

Events

Miscellaneous


Poland commemorates its most illustrious poet, Juliusz Slowacki, on a 20 złoty banknote In September 2009 the National Bank of Poland issued a commemorative20 złoty banknote. The new note, which is legal tender, celebrates the200th anniversary of the birth of the poet Juliusz Slowacki, a leading figurein the Romantic movement in Poland. The main motif on the front of thenote is the poet’s portrait and on the back there is an autographed frag-ment of his poem ‘Reassurance’ The new note is printed on paper, andthe security features it incorporates include a watermark, security thread,intaglio printing on the front and back, optically variable ink, and motifsprinted in iridescent ink. The National Bank of Poland periodically issuescommemorative banknotes to mark special events or anniversaries ofimportant Polish figures. The note is manufactured by Poland’s stateprinters, the Polish Security Printing Works (PWPW).

Banknote payinghomage to JuliuszSlowacki / NationalBank of Poland

In 2008 the Kingdom of Swaziland celebrated the 40th anniversary of its independ-ence from Britain and the 40th birthday of the country’s monarch, King Mswati III. Tomark these two events, Swaziland’s Central Bank issued an updated 100 and 200emalangeni banknote printed on a Hybrid® substrate. As banknotes manufacturedusing this substrate have given highly satisfactory results in terms of their durability,the central bank decided to launch a project to renew the whole series of banknotesin circulation. The new series printed on Hybrid® substrate is due to come out in mid-2010. The Swaziland issuing authority believes that the increased cost of the sub-strate will be offset by the extended lifetime of the banknotes and, as a result, overallprinting costs will be brought down. The Hybrid® substrate is manufactured byGiesecke und Devrient (G&D) and is made up of several layers: The bottom layercomprises pure cotton fibres, which may incorporate security features typical ofpaper substrates, such as watermarks, security threads, and fluorescent fibres, andthe outer layer is a plastic material that protects the print underneath.

New 2010 series of banknotes using theHybrid® substrate in Swaziland

Front of the 200 and 100 emalangeni notes / Central Bank of Swaziland

Event Date Location Remarks

XVIII Pacific RIM Banknote Printers´ Conference 8-13 November 2009 Tokyo, Japan

Exclusive meeting for central banks and banknote printers of the countriesof the Pacific region of Asia and America.

3rd Conference on Cash in circulation: models, stan-dards, trends 17-18 November 2009 Moscow, Russian

FederationOrganised by InterCrim-Press under the aegis of the Central Bank of theRussian Federation.

GS1 Standards users 13-14 January 2010 Strasbourg, France

Organised by the Banque de France and attended by cash and informa-tion systems experts from nine central banks in the European MonetaryUnion countries.

Seminar on excessive demand for cash in Hungary 26 January 2010 Budapest, Hungary

Organised by the National Bank of Hungary to analyse the use of cash infinancial transactions and the informal economy in Hungary.

The 7th Pan-European High Security PrintingConference 13-15 April 2010 Berlin,

GermanySpecific meeting on the high-tech security features used in banknotes andother valuable documents.

Currency Conference 9-12 May 2010 Buenos Aires, Argentina

Organised by Currency Research and the Banco Central de la RepúblicaArgentina.

Annual Conference of the European SecurityTransport Association (ESTA) 13-15 June 2010 Oporto,

PortugalEuropean forum for debate by central banks, the European Commissionand cash-in-transit companies.

European Banknote Conference 21-25 June 2010 Obidos, Portuga

Biennial meeting of experts from European central banks and printingworks.

3rd European Central Bank Banknote Seminar 30 June-1 July 2010 Frankfurt am Main,Germany Annual seminar aimed at banknote experts from central banks.

BPS IUG Conference 5-8 July 2010 Montreal, Canada

Annual meeting of users of banknote sorting machines manufactured byGiesecke & Devrient.

10th Meeting of Central Bank Treasurers 26-29 September 2010 Mexico D.F., Mexico

Biennial meeting of treasurers of central banks in Latin America, Spain andPortugal, organised by the Banco de México and CEMLA.

2nd meeting of experts in the pursuit of currencycounterfeiting crimes through central banks

30 September- 2 October 2010

Mexico DFMexico

Organised by the Banco de México and CEMLA and restricted to centralbanks in Latin America, Spain and Portugal.

Intergraf 13-15 October 2010 Barcelona, Spain Annual conference of security product printers.

Events

29

Miscellaneous


BILLETARIA’s editorial team consid-ers that this might be a goodmoment to dedicate the next issueof the journal to giving an overviewof the policies, projects, measuresand initiatives involved in the fightagainst counterfeiting. The topicis of such importance, and can belooked at from so many angles, thatit would be impossible to cover allaspects of it, and there will inevitablybe many points that are beyond our

scope. However, the interest andcomplexity of the issue itself,together with the fact that it is astrategic question of the first-orderfor almost all the world’s centralbanks, and that there is such adiverse range of ideas and variety ofprojects currently underway, sug-gest that a general review of theissue could be of interest to readers.Independently from the fact thatover the coming months we will

need to make our own efforts toidentify contributors from the frontline of the battle against counterfeit-ing, we would also like to invite anyexperts and practitioners who feelthey are able to collaborate to mak-ing the forthcoming special issue ofBILLETARIA a success to send ustheir contributions, ideas or sugges-tions: [email protected]. We wouldlike to express our thanks for thesupport and collaboration of all of

those who have offered their help,making us feel that BILLETARIA isprobably the specialist publicationwith the biggest number of ownersand contributors in the world: Thetrue owners of this journal are itsreaders and contributors, and it isfor them and thanks to them thatBILLETARIA comes out every sixmonths. Once again, thank you inadvance.

(cont. from previous page 5)

Q. Let’s move on to cash distribution. In Spain the Banco de Españahas 18 operational branches and has developed an auxiliary deposi-tory system supplementing our own branches to distribute bank-notes in the country. By contrast, the Bank of England has nobranches and just two cash centres. Are you satisfied about the dis-tribution of banknotes in the United Kingdom?

A. Well yes and no. We should not be running the cash distribution sys-tem. It’s the same reason why we outsource banknote printing; I ammuch happier managing a contract with a printer than I am managing 700banknote printers. De La Rue are experts in running banknote printingoperations; I am not. I spend my time managing contracts and trying toget the best out of De La Rue. I think printing should be the same as dis-tribution in the sense that both should be outsourced. However, out-sourcing the distribution system is harder because frankly it’s a muchmore complex system than the printing system. Within distribution we’retrying to hit a number of targets and that makes it more complicated. It’sa complex analytical task that requires very good staff in the banknotesarea of the central bank.

Q. Cash is so interesting that we could be talking about it for manyhours. However, unfortunately, BILLETARIA imposes limits to thelength of the interview. To finish, what is your thoughts about inter-national fora and, in particular, BILLETARIA?

A. I think that it is very interesting and useful to have regular exchanges ofviews. So, the seminars, the meetings, the conferences and the reviews,as BILLETARIA, are vital pieces to facilitate conversations among ChiefCashiers and banknote experts. All of us have common problems andtogether we can learn and look for solutions. A good example is the bank-note distribution field, where the central banks have shown their initiativeto improve their service according to the characteristics of the cash cycleand the framework of their respective countries. Another key area where itis useful to share information and views among central banks is counter-feiting. It is foreseeable that in the future we will face even tougher chal-lenges in terms of the sophistication of the counterfeiters. Although ofcourse we don’t want all to use exactly the same security features,because that would make the counterfeiter’s job easier, the challenge onsecurity features is common to all of us. And the more we do on that, thebetter, frankly.

Forthcoming issue of BILLETARIA


Banknote security features

Miscellaneous

1. Multitone watermarkImage incorporated into the paperwhich is visible when the banknote isheld against the light. It is created dur-ing the paper making process by vary-ing the thickness of the paper. Theresulting variations in opacity give riseto an image with bright and dark areas.

2. Electrotype watermarkA filigree visible when held up againstthe light. It is created during the papermaking process using a filament whichtakes the form of numbers or differenttypes of characters.

3. Embedded security threadA thin band of plastic inserted into thepaper. It is usually 1-2mm wide and 30-40 microns thick. It often bearsmicrotext and fluorescence. It can alsocontain electric and magnetic proper-ties readable by banknote processingmachines.

4. Window thread This band is made of a thread widerthan the abovementioned, 3-4mm, thatweaves in and out of the paper. Theuncovered sections are visible andcould contain an optically variable ele-ment such as an ink that changescolour when the banknote is tilted.

5. Thread with floating imagesA window thread inserted into thepaper using a standard windowembedding technique. The floatingimage effect is produced by embeddingmicrolenses into the thread. When thethread is tilted, the microlenses moveproducing floating images.

6. Intaglio printingThe printing with relief is detectable bythe sense of touch. It is a printing tech-nique in which the ink is transferreddirectly from the plate to the substrateunder high pressure and temperatureconditions. The printing produces arelief effect due to the thick layer of inkdeposited and the embossing of thesubstrate. The main motif of a banknoteis usually printed in intaglio.

7. Tactile marks for the visuallyimpairedThese tactile marks are detectable bytouch. They are printed in intaglio andare usually located near the borders ofa banknote to facilitate its recognitionby the visually impaired

8. Colour gradation in intaglioGradual superimposition of coloursprinted in intaglio, which are very diffi-cult to reproduce by copiers.

9. Latent imageA hidden image that becomes visiblewhen the banknote is viewed at a cer-tain angle. It is produced by intaglioprinting using a particular structure oflines.

10. Blind embossingAn embossed colourless image thatbecomes visible when the banknote isviewed from an oblique angle. It is cre-ated by deforming the substrate by thehigh pressure of inkless intaglio printing.

WATERMARKS

SECURITY THREADS

INTAGLIO FEATURESTactile

Visual

Banknote security featuresBanco de España Cash and Issue Department

This section presents a catalogue of the main banknote security features recognisable by the public and currently in useworldwide. The features have been grouped according to their common functional properties for detection by the generalpublic and retailers. The picture of each feature is accompanied by a brief explanatory text. The list will be subject to constantreview, adding new security features resulting from technological advances and discarding those that are no longer relevantfor the industry.


31Banknote security features

Miscellaneous

11. Iridescent inkA brilliant ink that changes colourwhen the banknote is tilted. The inkcan be applied in a stripe and display-ing an image.

12. OVI inkPrinting with optically variable ink (OVI),implies it will change colour when thebanknote is tilted. Its effect is increasedwhen the whole surface is covered by alayer of this ink applied in silkscreenprinting.

13. SPARK inkA particular type of OVI ink whichchanges colour, containing magneticparticles which can be oriented in suchway as to produce a dynamic coloureffect when the banknote is tilted. Theeffect is increased when the whole sur-face is covered by a layer of this inkapplied in silkscreen printing.

14. Optically variable devices (OVDs)Images produced onto holographic ele-ments which change form and colourwhen the banknote is tilted. These areanti-copying devices based on the lightdiffraction principle, such as kinegrams.OVDs can be stamped onto the sub-strate in the form of a patch or stripe.

15. Moiré variable colourFeature that uses the latent image prin-ciple. It produces a rainbow effect whichappears when the banknote is tilted. It isperformed by means of an offset print-ing combined with an intaglio printing.

16. MicroprintingPrinting of small characters that are notvisible to the naked eye but can be seenthrough a magnifying glass. When print-ed onto a banknote, it usually combinescharacters in positive and negative.

17. Ultraviolet properties (UV)These properties are incorporated intothe fluorescent pigments of the printinginks which are not visible in daylight butare visible under UV light. Ultravioletproperties in banknote printing aremore striking when the substrate usedis non-fluorescent under UV light.

18. Fluorescent fibresFibres made of synthetic material anddifferently coloured embedded into thepaper that are not visible in daylight butare visible under UV light. Their length isusually 3-6mm. There are certain fluo-rescent fibres in which each fibre hasseveral colours. The fibres are incorpo-rated onto the banknote in a randomway while elaborating the paper mass.

19. IR properties (IR)These are incorporated into the pig-ments of the inks. These are inks withdifferent infrared performance due todifferent absorptions in that spectrum.The IR characteristics are usuallyapplied combining transparent inks withinks opaque to IR.

20. See-through registerSome elements of an image are printedin offset on the front side of the bank -note and the remaining elements of theimage are printed on the back. Thewhole image with perfect coincidence isvisible when the banknote is heldagainst the light. This feature is alsoknown as ‘perfect register’ as it is print-ed simultaneously on front and backsides in register.

21. Structure of fine lines (moiréeffect)Set of fine and narrowly printed lineswhich produce an optical confusion,named moiré effect, when reproducedby copiers.

22. Rainbow printingOffset printing that creates in the bank -note an area with different colours thatare gradually mixed together to create arainbow effect.

23. NumberingThe serial number on each banknote,which enables it to be identified. It isusually printed in letterpress, naked eyereadable and may also be machinereadable if mechanically readable char-acters are used. The ink usually incor-porates magnetic properties.

24. Transparent windowTransparent area on a banknote onwhich optical effects are incorporatedby applying various elements, such as ablind-embossed image or an opticaldevice. It is used in polymer banknotesand is beginning to be used in paperbanknotes too. In these, the window isplaced on a holographic band.

25. MicroperforationsAn image made up of a large number ofmicroholes in the paper, whichbecomes visible when viewed againstthe light. The microholes are drilled bymeans of laser.

OPTICALLY VARIABLE FEATURES

VISIBLE BY MEANS OF A MAGNIFYING GLASS

ULTRAVIOLET AND INFRARED PROPERTIES

OTHER FEATURES

Nautical chart number 84 from the Zee Atlas. Gerard van Keulen. Amsterdam, 1709. Centro Nacional de Información Geográfica. Ministry of Public Works. Spain.

BIL

LETARIA

BILLETARIA

BILLETARIAApril 2010

PublisherBanco de España / Cash and Issue Departmentwww.bde.es

Editorial CommitteeJ. Darío NegueruelaManuel GalánWolfgang SöffnerLuis Fiore

Editorial Staff María Luísa Leyva Víctor Andrés Fernando León María Eulalia Andonegui José Moreno

Special Advisors Bernardo Calvo Hélder Rosalino

Secretariat Cash and Issue Department, Banco de EspañaAlcalá, 522 28027 Madrid Tel.: +34 91 338 6310 Fax: +34 91 338 6887

The opinions expressed in the articles are those of theauthors and do not necessary coincide with those of theiremployer or the Banco de España, unless otherwise stated.

Reproduction of the content of BILLETARIA in wholeor in part is permitted, provided the source is acknowl-edged.

For subscriptions and contributions, please contact:[email protected]

© Banco de EspañaLegal deposit: M-16.477-2007Printed in Spain, by Artes Gráficas Palermo, S. L.

YEAR IV ISSUE 7 APRIL 2010

international review on cash management · international review on cash management year iv issue 7...

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