Why are printed names of people featured on some currency notes and not others?
Printed names were added to the design of Australia’s currency notes to make it easier for the public to identify the famous Australians featured on notes. In 2002, printed names were added to $10 and $20 notes. In 2003 printed names were added to $50 notes, and in 2008 they were added to $100 notes. You can determine the year a note was manufactured by looking at the first two numbers of the serial number. The presence or absence of a printed name is not a determining factor when assessing whether a note is genuine. Australia’s currency notes have many features designed to combat counterfeiting and the Reserve Bank of Australia has produced a Counterfeit Detection Guide to assist the public to detect and deal with counterfeit notes.
