IP: Funny Money: New $20 FRNs are here

[Vladimir Z. Nuri]

From: believer at telepath.com
Subject: IP: Funny Money: New $20 FRNs are here
Date: Thu, 24 Sep 1998 17:05:38 -0500
To: believer at telepath.com

Source:  US Newswire
http://www.usnewswire.com/topnews/Current_Releases/0924-109.txt

U.S. Treasury, Federal Reserve Issue New $20 Note 
U.S. Newswire
24 Sep 10:45

 U.S. Treasury, Federal Reserve Issue New $20 Note
 To: National and Financial Desks
 Contact: Hamilton Dix of the U.S. Department of the Treasury,
          202-622-2960, or
          Bob Moore of the Federal Reserve,
          202-452-3215

   WASHINGTON, Sept. 24 /U.S. Newswire/ -- Treasury Secretary Robert
E. Rubin and Federal Reserve Board Chairman Alan Greenspan today
announced the issuance of the redesigned $20 note, which includes new
and modified security features to deter counterfeiting of U.S.
currency.

   Rubin and U.S. Treasurer Mary Ellen Withrow marked the
issuance of the new notes in a ceremony at Treasury's Cash Room in
Washington, D.C. More than two dozen regional events hosted by
Federal Reserve banks and branches and major retailers were also
conducted around the country.

   "We have introduced a series of features that greatly raise the
hurdle for counterfeiters," Rubin said. "Together these features
amount to a formidable tool, and make spotting a counterfeit
note easier than ever. For them to be effective, it is important that
people stop for a moment to look for the new features."

   The new $20 will replace older notes gradually, and older series
$20 notes still in good condition will be recirculated. About
$83 billion worth of $20 notes is currently in circulation, 80
percent of those in the U.S. More than $450 billion worth of
U.S. currency circulates around the globe.

   The Series 1996 $20 note is the third U.S. currency note to be
redesigned to include new and modified security features. New $10 and
$5 notes are expected to be issued simultaneously in 2000, and a new
$1 note with a more modest redesign will follow.

   "We are confident that the introduction of this third redesigned
note will be as smooth as that of the $100 and $50 notes," Chairman
Greenspan said. "Older notes will not be recalled or devalued. All
existing notes will continue to be legal tender."

   Like the Series 1996 $100 and $50 notes introduced since 1996, the
new $20 note has a familiar appearance. The size, color and
historical subjects have not changed. It also incorporates several
security features that have proved effective against would-be
counterfeiters: a watermark; enhanced security thread; fine-line
printing patterns; color-shifting ink; and a larger, off-center
portrait that is the most noticeable change in the overall
architecture of the note. There are also two features for the blind
and visually impaired. The new $20 note includes a capability that
will allow the development of technology to help the blind ascertain
the denomination of their currency. In addition, the $20 and $50
notes have a large numeral on the back that make the notes easier for
millions of Americans with low vision to read.

   The continuing introduction of redesigned notes is a critical
component of the Federal government's anti-counterfeiting effort.
The new series aims to maintain the security of the nation's currency
as computerized reprographic technologies such as color copiers,
scanners and printers become more sophisticated and more readily
available. The $20 note is the most frequently counterfeited note in
the United States.

   Since the $20 note is so widely used in daily commerce and most
frequently dispensed by ATMs, broad nationwide recognition of the new
note when it is introduced will minimize apprehension on the part of
the public. A public education campaign now underway encourages the
public and people who handle cash every day to become familiar with
the design and security features of the new notes. Retailers and
financial institutions are educating their employees and customers by
sending posters to their outlets, training cashiers, offering
pamphlets to the public, and including information about the new note
in advertising circulars and on shopping bags. More than 100
constituency organizations have helped reach small business owners,
loss prevention managers, visually impaired and older Americans, and
others with a stake in the new note's introduction. U.S. embassies
and consulates are using materials translated into 15 languages to
conduct localized education outreach to ensure that local users of
U.S. currency as well as financial institutions are prepared for the
issuance of the new note.

   Fact sheets on the new note, the history of U.S. currency and
related agencies are available at http://www.moneyfactory.com.

 -0-
 /U.S. Newswire  202-347-2770/
 09/24 10:45

Copyright 1998, U.S. Newswire
-----------------------
NOTE: In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. section 107, this material is
distributed without profit or payment to those who have expressed a prior
interest in receiving this information for non-profit research and
educational purposes only. For more information go to:
http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml
-----------------------




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