Central Banking Awards Recognise Currency Management and Initiative

Central Banking Publications runs an award scheme each year, with 18 different categories, two of which relate specifically to currency.

The winner of this year’s Currency Manager of the Year award is the Central Bank of the United Arab Emirates (CBUAE) for the upgrade of is banknotes, resulting in the issue of five new denominations to date on polymer.

The new banknotes were issued following comprehensive benchmarking studies with other central banks, including with those in Australia and the UK, which pioneered polymer notes.

The new 50 dirham polymer banknote was released as part of the UAE’s golden jubilee celebrations in December 2021, the 5 and 10 dirham notes in April 2022 during Eid, and a 1,000 dirham was released in December 2022 to coincide with the UAE’s 51st national day. Then, in 2023, coinciding with the UAE’s hosting of COP 28, a 500 dirham banknote was issued with the design encapsulating the UAE’s journey on sustainability.