I had been reading about Bank of England plastic fiver pound since 2005 but until today, only a Northern Ireland plastic fiver has been produced. Today, I read a news about England £5 Polymer again in Independent UK. The Bank of England is considering a plastic fiver and a £50 with transparent slots to improve durability and protect against counterfeiting in the next generation of bank notes. De La Rue has a contract to produce the UK's notes until 2015. However, it is understood that the contract could allow new suppliers to produce some of these updated notes ahead of that date.
Picture by BBC: Northern Ireland £5 note
Bank officials are believed to be concerned that the £5 note, which as a low denomination changes hands quickly, is not tough enough. Sterling notes are currently made mainly from cotton, but Australia paved the way with a polymer currency that better withstands everyday use.
A source close to the Bank said: "This is at the evaluation stage. A decision won't be made for the next year or two and production a little while after that, but a plastic £5 note is a possibility even though it won't provide as much security as other options."
A polymer note is considered easier to replicate than those with clear, plastic windows within a traditional cotton fabric. The Bank is considering the latter option for its other notes, favouring a trial with the £50.
A far less used note, the £50 does not require the durability features of a fiver, but is more costly to the economy if counterfeited on a large scale. "The Bank is looking at ways of putting a see-through, transparent window on notes as a primary security feature," said the source.An industry source added: "There are ongoing conversations about the future features of banknotes, particularly in order to combat counterfeiting, between the Bank and industry suppliers."Source: Independent
With the introduction of the new £5 polymer note will the £5 paper note become the collectibles item? Only time will tell but find a UNC £5 note are certainly a hassle in Malaysia. I personally don't think Bank of England will give it a try for Polymer Fiver Pound. They're still looking for other option that far much better then Polymer notes. But it is certainly a good news for collector like us, we can start keep the good condition £5 paper note. Their price will be going up one day.
