Security Threads for Banknotes

A new special report, ‘Security Threads for Banknotes’, is about to be released. Published by Currency Publications, it follows the successful and informative Special Report ‘Diffractive Features on Banknotes’. Published in a similar format, the 130-page report is available in both printed and digital form.

The publication covers the history of security threads in banknotes from their first inception in the 1860s right up to present day. It especially focuses on the last 30 years, which have seen exceptional developments in new security technologies, many of which have been incorporated into or adopted for use as threads.

The report features a review of each of the most recent denominations of each country’s circulating banknotes at the end of 2020 based on their thread content and, where possible, type. This review concludes the Report but in between the first chapter on the history and milestones of thread development and the denomination review there is a wealth of valuable information.

Other chapters cover thread types, materials and manufacturing, integration, products and producers, counterfeiting, pricing, trends and potential future developments. A glossary is also included.

There are currently 1,026 circulating denominations in the world (latest/currency versions of notes only), of which just over 85% are printed on paper. Of these, a small 5% do not have threads. Of those that do, 20% have an embedded thread, 23% have a narrow windowed thread and nearly 50% have a wide windowed thread. 8.5% have more than one thread (eg. embedded and windowed).

The thread technology that stands out in all of this is the wide windowed thread – and in particular the range of features that this can now carry, from colour shift and diffraction to the new generation of micro-optics, micro-lenses and micro-mirrors.

The report contains other insights and anecdotes, but it is its comprehensive coverage of all aspects of banknote threads, from cradle to grave, that make it a must for your library.

It will be made available free of charge to central banks and issuing authorities, and at a deep discount to Currency News subscribers. Further details on how to obtain your copy will be sent out as soon as the Report is available.