All bank notes will have a color almost similar to the ones used on the current bank notes—orange for P20, red for P50, bluish violet for P100, green for P200, black/gold for P500 and blue for P1,000. They, however, will carry some monochromatic color schemes in some parts of the bank notes.
Two-year lead time - The source said that the new designs took the BSP’s numismatic committee, headed by Deputy Governor Diwa Guinigundo, two years to complete. Members of the committee who initiated new design studies and proposed upgraded security features for consideration by the Monetary Board include renowned historian and newspaper columnist Ambeth Ocampo.
The new images found on the bank notes, which were all designed by Filipinos, were approved by the heroes’ and past presidents’ immediate families. Also, the source said that the new bank notes will be hygienically treated, making them less prone to sweat and dirt.
“Mas matagal yung buhay ng bagong bank notes [The bank notes will last longer],” he added.
“They are being printed on the latest banknote machine installed in the world,” the source said.
The bank notes will be shipped from France. The source said that printing the new Philippine notes in France is cheaper compared to doing it locally. Oberthur Technologies was the winning bidder for the production of the bank notes.
The contract, which cost 25.3 million euro, gives the firm until the middle of next year to deliver some 702 million pieces of new bank notes. The source said that the BSP is slating to launch the bank notes this month, and will start circulating them next year. Oberthur was also able to produce the bank notes only eight weeks after it received the new designs.
The BSP was further pleased with the cheap production cost of the new bank notes. The P20 and P50 denominations will cost P1.50 each to produce; P100 at P2 each; and the P500 and P1,000 denominations at P3.50 each.
The French-based firm, during the bidding in August, offered a 30-percent lower price than the English, Dutch, American-Swedish, French-Sino, Swiss and Australian firms that also were interested in the contract. Oberthur will source the paper that will be used in producing the bank notes from Sweden, United Kingdom, Germany and France.
Oberthur Technologies is a French printing firm that was responsible for the new Costa Rican bank notes, as well as the Thai and Belgian e-passports. The France-based firm was also the winning bidder for the country’s first ePassport project, which was implemented last year.