Budapest Post

Cum Deo pro Patria et Libertate
Budapest, Europe and world news

New design for Britain's most-forged banknote

The Bank of England says the new £20 note featuring artist JMW Turner will enter circulation in February.

The new design of Britain's most common, and most forged, banknote has been unveiled by the Bank of England.

Security features on the next £20 note, featuring artist JMW Turner, will include two see-through windows on the note and a metallic hologram.

In the first half this year, 88% of detected banknote forgeries were £20 notes, the Bank's statistics show.

The new design, which the Bank describes as its most secure, enters circulation on 20 February next year.


Why is the £20 note important?


The most commonly circulating banknote in Britain is the £20 note, with two billion of them in the system.

That is double the number of £10 notes in circulation, and far greater than the number of £5 notes (396 million) and £50 notes (344 million).

The popularity of the note is part of the reason for it also being the most likely to be forged.

The Bank discovered 228,000 counterfeit banknotes in the first half of the year, of which 201,000 were £20 notes.

It has easily been the most commonly forged Bank of England banknote in each of the past 10 years.

The new £20 note will be the first to feature the signature of Sarah John, the Bank's chief cashier, who said: "The new £20 is an important part of our commitment to providing banknotes that people can use with confidence.

"Our polymer notes are much harder to counterfeit and, with the £20 being our most common note, this marks a big step forward in our fight against counterfeiting."

What will the new banknote look like?

The banknote will feature Turner's self-portrait, from 1799, currently on display in the Tate Britain, and one of his most eminent paintings - The Fighting Temeraire - which can be seen in the National Gallery.

In 2005, the painting - a tribute to the ship HMS Temeraire in Nelson's victory at the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805 - was voted Britain's greatest painting in a poll organised by the BBC.

The quote on the banknote - "Light is therefore colour" - comes from an 1818 lecture by Turner at the Royal Academy, where he first exhibited at the age of 15. His signature is from his will in which he bequeathed his work to the nation.


Others features include:

A large see-through window, based on the shape of the fountains in London's Trafalgar Square, with a blue and gold foil on the front depicting Margate lighthouse and the Turner Contemporary gallery in the town


A smaller see-through window in the bottom corner of the note inspired by Tintern Abbey


A metallic hologram which changes between the words "Twenty" and "Pounds" when tilted


The Queen's portrait in the see-through window with "£20 Bank of England" printed twice around the edge


A silver foil patch with the 3D image of the coronation crown


A purple foil patch containing the letter T, based on the staircase at the Tate Britain gallery

Bank of England governor Mark Carney said: "As the new Turner £20 testifies, money can be a work of art in everyone's pocket."

The note is replacing the current £20 note featuring the economist Adam Smith. Of the five characters on banknotes by the end of 2021, other than the Queen only Jane Austen - who has appeared on the £10 note since 2017 - is a woman.


What is the note made of?


The new £20 note will be the third Bank of England banknote to be made from polymer, following the new £5 note and new £10 note. The next version of the £50 note, to be launched by the end of 2021, will also be polymer.

The theory is that the plastic notes will be more sturdy, such as surviving a spin in the washing machine, and be more resistant to counterfeiting.

Banks in Scotland, Northern Ireland and the Isle of Man have issued plastic banknotes in the past.

How was Turner chosen as the face of the note?


The Bank received 29,701 nominations from the public after it announced it wanted to celebrate an artist on the note. Some 590 eligible visual artists were considered for the honour - about a fifth of whom are women.

A brief history of currency from the British Museum


Turner Contemporary: Did art transform 'no-go zone' Margate?


Consumers' credit card spending 'overtakes cash'


What is the least valuable British coin ever?


The list was considered by a Bank committee, which included independent experts. It drew up a shortlist of five - Turner, filmmaker Charlie Chaplin, sculptor Barbara Hepworth, painter William Hogarth, and designer Josiah Wedgwood - from which the Bank's governor, Mr Carney, made the final choice of the English Romantic artist Joseph Mallord William Turner, or JMW Turner (1775 - 1851).

He is known as "the painter of light" and described by artist Tracey Emin as a "wild maverick". The unveiling was held at the Turner Contemporary in Margate, Kent. It was in the town that the London-born Turner, the son of a barber and wig maker, lived and more than 100 of his works were inspired by the East Kent coast.


Who are on other banknotes?


Sir Winston Churchill appears on the Bank of England's polymer £5 note.

Jane Austen was chosen to appear on the plastic £10 note after a campaign to represent women other than the Queen on English notes.

Computer pioneer and codebreaker Alan Turing will feature on the new design of the Bank of England's £50 note, to enter circulation by the end of 2021.

A host of different people have appeared on banknotes issued in Scotland and Northern Ireland. Ulster Bank's vertical £5 and £10 notes entered circulation in Northern Ireland in February.

AI Disclaimer: An advanced artificial intelligence (AI) system generated the content of this page on its own. This innovative technology conducts extensive research from a variety of reliable sources, performs rigorous fact-checking and verification, cleans up and balances biased or manipulated content, and presents a minimal factual summary that is just enough yet essential for you to function as an informed and educated citizen. Please keep in mind, however, that this system is an evolving technology, and as a result, the article may contain accidental inaccuracies or errors. We urge you to help us improve our site by reporting any inaccuracies you find using the "Contact Us" link at the bottom of this page. Your helpful feedback helps us improve our system and deliver more precise content. When you find an article of interest here, please look for the full and extensive coverage of this topic in traditional news sources, as they are written by professional journalists that we try to support, not replace. We appreciate your understanding and assistance.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
IMF Upgrades Global Growth Forecast as Weaker Dollar Supports Outlook
House Republicans Move to Defund OECD Over Global Tax Dispute
France Opens Criminal Investigation into X Over Algorithm Manipulation Allegations
Trump Steamrolls EU in Landmark Trade Win: US–EU Trade Deal Imposes 15% Tariff on European Imports
ChatGPT CEO Sam Altman says people share personal info with ChatGPT but don’t know chats can be used as court evidence in legal cases.
Intel Reports Revenue Beats but Sees 81% Rise in Losses
Politics is a good business: Barack Obama’s Reported Net Worth Growth, 1990–2025
UN's Top Court Declares Environmental Protection a Legal Obligation Under International Law
"Crazy Thing": OpenAI's Sam Altman Warns Of AI Voice Fraud Crisis In Banking
The Podcaster Who Accidentally Revealed He Earns Over $10 Million a Year
UK Government Considers Dropping Demand for Apple Encryption Backdoor
Japanese Man Discovers Family Connection Through DNA Testing After Decades of Separation
Russia Signals Openness to Ukraine Peace Talks Amid Escalating Drone Warfare
Switzerland Implements Ban on Mammography Screening
Pogacar Extends Dominance with Stage Fifteen Triumph at Tour de France
President Trump Diagnosed with Chronic Venous Insufficiency After Leg Swelling
CEO Resigns Amid Controversy Over Relationship with HR Executive
NVIDIA Achieves $4 Trillion Valuation Amid AI Demand
Tulsi Gabbard Unveils Evidence Alleging Political Manipulation of Intelligence During Trump Administration
Centrist Criticism of von der Leyen Resurfaces as she Survives EU Confidence Vote
Trump Announces Coca-Cola to Shift to Cane Sugar in U.S. Production
FIFA Pressured to Rethink World Cup Calendar Due to Climate Change
Zelensky Reshuffles Cabinet to Win Support at Home and in Washington
"Can You Hit Moscow?" Trump Asked Zelensky To Make Putin "Feel The Pain"
Church of England Removes 1991 Sexuality Guidelines from Clergy Selection
Superman Franchise Achieves Success with Latest Release
Hungary's Viktor Orban Rejects Agreements on Illegal Migration
Air India Pilot’s Mental Health Records Under Scrutiny
Jamie Dimon Warns Europe Is Losing Global Competitiveness and Flags Market Complacency
Moonshot AI Unveils Kimi K2: A New Open-Source AI Model
Martha Wells Says Humanity Still Far from True Artificial Intelligence
Nvidia Becomes World’s First Four‑Trillion‑Dollar Company Amid AI Boom
EU Delays Retaliatory Tariffs Amid New U.S. Threats on Imports
Trump Proposes Supplying Arms to Ukraine Through NATO Allies
US Opens First Rare Earth Mine in Over 70 Years in Wyoming
Bitcoin Reaches New Milestone of $116,000
Severe Heatwave Claims 2,300 Lives Across Europe
Declining Beer Consumption Signals Cultural Shift in Germany
Emails Leaked: How Passenger Luggage Became a Side Income for Airport Workers
Polish MEP: “Dear Leftists - China is laughing at you, Russia is laughing, India is laughing”
Western Europe Records Hottest June on Record
BRICS Expands Membership with Indonesia and Ten New Partner Countries
Elon Musk Founds a Party Following a Poll on X: "You Wanted It – You Got It!"
China’s Central Bank Consults European Peers on Low-Rate Strategies
France Requests Airlines to Cut Flights at Paris Airports Amid Planned Air Traffic Controller Strike
Poland Implements Border Checks Amid Growing Migration Tensions
Emirates Airline Expands Market Share with New $20 Million Campaign
Amazon Reaches Milestone with Deployment of One Millionth Robot
Yulia Putintseva Calls for Spectator Ejection at Wimbledon Over Safety Concerns
House Oversight Committee Subpoenas Former Jill Biden Aide Amid Investigation into Alleged Concealment of President Biden's Cognitive Health
×