You Asked, We Answered. What You Wanted to Know About Barbados’ New Polymer Banknotes, Part 1

With a new series of redesigned banknotes – one made of a completely new material – set to go into circulation on December 5, it’s to be expected that Barbadians have questions. The Central Bank of Barbados recently conducted a survey to find out what people wanted to know about the new notes, and we’re answering the top 10 most-asked questions. Here are the answers to the first five of those questions. We’ll address the next five in part two.

Why are the notes being changed?

While some countries and territories such as Canada and England change the design of their money regularly, that hasn’t been the case in Barbados. In fact, the 2013 banknote series was the first time the look of our banknotes changed significantly in 40 years! It’s understandable then, that the question posed most often in the survey was why the Central Bank is changing the notes again so soon.

What you may not have realised is that there have been subtle changes to our banknotes throughout those four decades. That’s because the Bank is constantly reviewing the security features in our money and adding new ones in an attempt to stay ahead of counterfeiters. Doing this while maintaining the same design can become a little confusing, however, because it means there are notes in circulation that look the same, but have different features for you to check. So what we did in 2013 and are doing again in 2022 is change the design as well. This way, you’ll know which features to look for on which notes.

Isn’t Barbados supposed to be moving away from cash?

Some people wanted to know why bother with new banknotes at all. “Thought we were going cashless.”

It is true that Government and the Central Bank have both been advocating for greater use of digital payments, but the goal is less cash and not cashless. And the reality is that cash continues to be popular. As Governor Haynes mentioned in his remarks at the launch of the new series, the value of cash in circulation in 2021 was $960 million. That was up from 2020.

It’s also worth noting that in the same survey that we conducted about the new series, 80 percent of respondents said they used cash either as their main way to pay (26 percent) or in conjunction with other payment methods (54 percent). Only 19 percent of respondents said they rarely use cash, and less than 1 percent said they didn’t use it at all.

This all means that even as more people embrace alternative ways of paying, there will be a place for cash, at least in the medium-term. Therefore, the Bank is committed to ensuring that the cash that is in circulation is the most secure it can be.

Are the new notes counterfeit-proof?

Speaking of secure, several people who completed the survey wanted to know how secure the new notes will be.

Every central bank would love to issue banknotes that cannot be counterfeited, but no such note exists. That’s because all it takes for a counterfeiter to be successful is for someone to accept the fake bill.

What central banks do, therefore, is try to make life difficult for these fraudsters by designing notes with security features that are harder for them to simulate, but easy for you to authenticate.

That’s what we’ve done with this series. We’ve printed them on a more secure material – polymer – and included transparent areas on the notes, something counterfeiters can’t accomplish easily. And there are a myriad of other easy-to-check features, including raised areas on the notes, holograms, and elements of the notes that glow under ultraviolet (UV) light.

But you will still need to do your part and check your money. In the coming weeks and months, the Bank will be teaching you how to do that, and do it quickly.

How durable are the new banknotes?

Since polymer is new to Barbados, several people had questions about the new substrate. One of the most common was “how durable is it?”

Very. In fact, that was one of the main reasons we made the switch. Polymer is non-porous and waterproof, which means that if you spill a drink on it, all you have to do is get a damp cloth and wipe it off. Those same qualities mean it doesn’t absorb moisture or dirt, so the new money won’t become limp or soiled easily.

As a result, polymer banknotes tend to have a lifespan that is about two and a half times that of paper banknotes, so the Bank will have to replace them less often. This will result in a cost-savings in the medium term.

Learn more about the benefits of polymer banknotes.

Can the new money be bent?

Some people also wanted to know if the new notes can be bent, and if they will be able to put them in their billfolds.

The answer is yes. While polymer is a different material from what Barbadians are accustomed to, and as such, you will need to handle the notes a little differently, you can still put them in your purses and wallets. People who like to ball up their notes, however, will find that that isn’t as easy to do… but the Bank encourages you not to do that anyway.

Read this article to separate fact from fiction when it comes to polymer banknotes.

Now you have the answers to five of the top 10 questions people wanted to know about Barbados’ new notes. Look out for part two, where we address queries about the money being spent on the new series, the fate of older banknotes, and more.