The UK’s incoming plastic £5 banknote is as an ‘exciting opportunity’ that showcases development in security devices for currency applications, says a trade body for the hologram industry. The International Hologram Manufacturers Association (IHMA) welcomes the £5 note, which will be made from a durable polymer and enters circulation in September after public consultation by the Bank of England. The IHMA is also looking forward to the new £10 and £20 notes that will follow as the old cotton fibre and linen rag banknotes are removed from circulation and destroyed.
The polymer editions are made from a thin, transparent and flexible film made of polypropylene that’s coated with a lacquer layer to enable them to carry the printed design features of the banknote. This will allow the inclusion of windows or clear portions in the design, used to provide enhanced protection and featuring holograms for verification and anti-counterfeiting purposes. The IHMA says that other countries, including Canada, New Zealand, Romania and Vietnam, have been using polymer banknotes featuring holograms for years.
So, as the UK adopts banknotes featuring the same technology, then the move has to be seen as another example of how holography continues to evolve as a security feature for notes, the association says. Holograms have featured on banknotes since 1987 and have progressed since from patches to complex stripes as integral design and print features on notes.
Dr Mark Deakes, pictured, general secretary of the IHMA, says the new £5 opens an exciting new chapter for security holograms.
He said: “Holography is an effective weapon in the battle to thwart banknote counterfeiters, continually evolving as an effective first line of defence feature for modern banknotes. The new £5 note is a great example of this evolution and illustrates some of the best and most technically innovative holograms on banknotes, which combine with other features to deliver value added solutions. Polymer substrates, like their paper counterparts, are now benefitting from this type of technology. The Bank of England is now among those leading the way with banknotes that combine improved durability and the best in modern hologram technology.”
Holograms for both polymer and paper banknotes allow not only the general public but also cashiers and those operating cash tills in stores, to recognise whether or not a banknote is bona fide.
About the IHMA – www.ihma.org
IHMA members are producers and converters of holograms for banknote security, anti-counterfeiting, brand protection, packaging, graphics and other commercial applications.
