UK's £20 banknote to go plastic

UK's £20 banknote to go plastic

The UK's next £20 note will be printed on polymer in a move to make the paper currency more secure and durable.

In December 2013, the Bank announced that the next £5 and £10 banknotes would be printed on polymer following a 10 week public consultation that found 87% of respondent were in favour of the change.

The polymer £5 note featuring Winston Churchill will be issued in autumn 2016, the £10 polymer note featuring Jane Austen entering circulation a year later.

The Bank says it made the decision to move to polymer for the £20 note - the UK's most common form of tender with 1.9 billion in circulation - following extensive research into the developments in security features for notes printed on cotton-based paper and polymer since the 2013 decision was made.

A competitive tender process for the supply of the polymer for the £20 note is expected to start in late 2015.

In October, De la Rue signed a new 10 year contract with the Bank of England to print its sterling banknotes at the Bank's facility in Debden, Essex.

The note, which will feature a visual artist nominated during the public nominations period held earlier this year, will enter circulation in 3-5 years’ time.

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