New Plastic Canadian Dollars
The Bank of Canada began circulating $100 polymer bank notes this week in an effort to combat counterfeiting and reduce costs. So why don’t more countries use plastic cash?
When counterfeiting hit a peak in [Canada] from 2001 to 2004, the blame was put on the $10 and $5 printed in 2001 and 2002, which were deemed to have too few security features.
The new notes, says Bank of Canada senior analyst Julie Girard, will also last 2.5 times longer than paper bills. That will put the life span of a $20 bill - Canada’s most widely circulated denomination - to at least seven years.