Are businesses ready for polymer notes?

OTTAWA

Are people ready?

More specifically, is cash-handling equipment ready for polymer money?

Business that use automated banking machines (ABMs), vending machines, self-serve checkouts or cash counters, will want to check that equipment is compatible with polymer bank notes. It may need to be upgraded, or, in some cases, replaced.

The Bank of Canada recommends businesses call their equipment suppliers or manufacturers with any questions about machine compatibility and plans for upgrades.

The bank also has tools to help as Canada moves to the new, more secure and more durable polymer notes.

The bank provides free bank note training seminars across the country. Those presentations can be customized to suit business needs and are occasionally presented in partnership with local police agencies. Topics include bank note security features, what to do with a suspected counterfeit, and how to handle polymer notes.

The bank has free materials that can help people start on the right track. Download or order the bank’s full suite of products by visiting www.bankofcanada.ca/banknotes and following the link for materials.

Polymer notes are full of benefits:

- They’re more secure, with leading-edge security features that are easy to check and hard to counterfeit.

- They’re very durable, lasting at least 2.5 times longer than paper notes and having a reduced impact on the environment.

- They’re easy to handle. Polymer notes feel different from their paper counterparts, but they’re just as simple to use.

To learn more: visit www.bankofcanada.ca/banknotes or education@bankofcanada.ca, or call 1-888-513-8212.

Issue dates for polymer notes are:

- $100 and $50: now in circulation;

- $20: coming in November; and

- $10 and $5 bills by late 2013.

July 6, 2012