News in Brief

New Printworks for Uganda

The official launch ceremony for a new security document printing facility has taken place in Entebbe in Uganda. It will be owned and operated by the Uganda Security Printing Company (USPC), which was set up in 2018 as a joint venture between the state-owned Uganda Printing and Publishing Corporation (UPPC), which owns 51%, and Veridos, the German provider of integrated identity solutions, which owns 49%.

USPC will focus first on the production of ID cards and e-passports and the supporting data systems, with drivers licenses, birth and death certificates to follow. Future opportunities include land titles, vaccination and health certificates, and academic credentials.

Long-term, the printworks may also be used to produce currency, subject to a feasibility study on its viability. According to government officials, this and the domestic production of other security documents will reduce the outflow of foreign exchange reserves and create employment.

The new facility is costing 107 billion shillings (US$24 million), and is expected to be up and running in 18 months’ time.

Bulgaria Approves Plan to Adopt Euro

Bulgaria’s government has approved a national plan to join the eurozone as of 1 January 2024, despite reported concerns within the ruling coalition over the lack of detailed analysis on the impact of the move.

Political uncertainty and three elections last year delayed the plan, drafted after Bulgaria was admitted together with Croatia to the ERM-2 mechanism, a mandatory stage for joining the euro, in 2020.

The European Union’s poorest member has pledged to adopt the single currency at its current fixed rate in 2024.

According to Finance Minister Assen Vassilev, the newly-approved plan gives a clear timeline to banks and other payment institutions on how the euro will be adopted. ‘It is a first technical step’, he said.

Cash Does Not Transmit COVID, Says New Study

A new study from researchers at Brigham Young University in Utah has claimed that the SARS-CoV-2 virus is almost immediately non-viable if deposited on a banknote, but persists on plastic cards for up to 48 hours.

The research team dosed $1 bills, quarters, pennies and credit cards with the virus and then tested them after 30 minutes, four hours, 24 hours and 48 hours.

They found that virus was difficult to detect on the dollar bills after a half hour after being placed there, with a reduction of 99.9993% at the 30 minute mark. They tested again after 24 and 48 hours and found no live virus on the banknotes.

By contrast, the virus only reduced by 90% on cards at the 30-minute mark. This reduction rate increased to 99.6% by four hours, and 99.96% by 24 hours, but was still detectable 48 hours later. The coins performed similarly to the plastic cards.

In an additional test, the research team obtained fresh samples of $1 bills, quarters and pennies and, within an hour, swabbed the surfaces and edges with a sterile cotton swab. They also swabbed a collection of cards. They detected no virus on the banknotes or the coins and only a low level on the cards.

The study, published in PLOS ONE, concluded that ‘the use of credit and debit cards over cash as a COVID-19 prevention measure is not advisable’.

Sales Up, Profits Down for Glory

Cash automation specialist Glory has reported its results for the year ending March 2022, later than usual due to the discovery of a serious incident of embezzlement by a former employee in February (see CN March 2022) Sales for the year increased by 4.2% to ¥226.5 billion, but operating income fell by 27.5% to ¥10.3 billion.

Sales to financial institutions and the retail industry were strong in the company’s overseas markets, particularly for deposit machines and self-service coin and banknote recyclers, which the company attributed to a growing need for contact-free and self-service solution to prevent COVID transmission. Overseas sales grew by 22% to ¥127 billion, and now comprise 57% of the company’s turnover and 41% of its operating profit.

Sales in the company’s retail and transportation, financial and amusement segments in Japan were all down on the previous year, impacted by ongoing COVID restrictions and low vaccination rates in the region, shortages of semiconductors and soaring material prices, all of which suppressed production and sales activities.

The outlook for the year ending March 2023 remains uncertain, says Glory, with global shortages of parts such as semiconductors and soaring material prices continuing, exacerbated by the Russia-Ukraine situation and the prospect of further supply chain disruption caused by lockdowns in China. It does, however, predict steady demand for contactless and self-service approaches, not only as a means of addressing labour shortages but also to help prevent infections.

As a result, the company is forecasting full year sales of ¥245 billion, (up 8.1%), but a further reduction in operating income of 41.7% to ¥6 billion.

New BEP Facility Moves Ahead

The construction of the US Bureau of Engraving and Printing’s new printworks in Maryland has taken a further step forward, with the transfer of the title to the 104-acre current site of the Beltsville Agricultural Research Center in late April from the US Department of Agriculture to the Treasury Department, The design of the new facility is ongoing, with an expected conclusion during the summer of 2023. Following that, the construction of the new BEP will start under the supervision of the US Army Corps of Engineers.

The project is costing $1.4 billion, and if completed on time, production of US notes will start in 2027.