Tuesday, June 21, 2011

Plastic Bills and Money Laundering

Did you know Canada.. you might have read yesterday about the Federal Government and Bank of Canada discussing new plastic bills that will be introduced in the coming years, replacing our current currency. The $100 and $50 bills are slated to begin circulating in November 2011 and March 2012. Then the $20, $10 and $5 bills are expected to be unveiled and released by the end of 2013. While their colours will not change, the smaller-denomination notes will have some interesting new themes:

* The $5 note is dedicated to Canada's space program
* The $10 note will depict Canada's railway lines
* The $20 note will feature sacrifices made in Canadian conflicts

It's part of a plan to modernize and protect Canadian currency against counterfeiting.

The new plastic bills, made from a polymer material, are harder to fake, recyclable, and two to three times more resistant to tearing, the Bank of Canada said.

Stats Canada has an interesting article about Money laundering in Canada which these new bills are suppose to help prevent. It was surprising to read that following a period of relative stability in the early part of the decade, the rate of money laundering grew five-fold from 2004 to 2006. 83% of those accused of money laundering are males, and research has shown that money laundering is often associated with the illegal drug trade.

1 comment:

  1. I saw this on the news last night. Not sure what I think about it, but I remember thinking the loonie and twoonie where dumb and we still have them around (and a heavy purselol)

    ReplyDelete

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