Greener Substrates: The Future of Currency Materials
The material base of money is rarely noticed by the people who use it. Notes slip from hand to hand, folded, crumpled, tucked into wallets, then eventually withdrawn by a bank when too worn to circulate. Yet the substrate—the sheet on which money is printed—shapes both the note’s lifespan and its ecological footprint. For an […]
Printing with Purpose: Reducing the Carbon Footprint of Banknote Production
Every banknote is a piece of engineering. Behind the colours and symbols lie layers of inks, security features, foils, and varnishes, each chosen to deter counterfeiting while maintaining durability. Yet the processes that bring these notes to life consume significant energy and resources. For a global industry facing mounting scrutiny, banknote printing has become a […]
Recycling the Note: Closing the Loop in Currency Disposal
Every banknote has an ending. After years of circulation, the edges fray, the ink fades, and the note loses its crispness. Central banks then face a crucial question: what to do with the mountains of old notes withdrawn from circulation each year? For decades, the answer was incineration. Today, sustainability demands more. Cotton-based notes are […]
Beyond the Note: Sustainability in Coinage
Coins, often overlooked in sustainability debates, pose unique challenges. They are heavy, metal-intensive, and energy-hungry to produce. Yet they last far longer than notes—decades, sometimes centuries—and circulate widely. Making coins more sustainable requires balancing longevity with resource intensity. The metals most often used—copper, nickel, zinc, and steel—are extracted through mining, one of the most environmentally […]
Towards a Circular Currency Economy
The ultimate ambition for sustainable currency is not incremental improvement but transformation: a circular economy where resources are continually reused, waste is eliminated, and the lifecycle of money mirrors the resilience it represents. Achieving this vision requires systemic change. A circular currency economy begins with design. Notes and coins must be conceived with their end […]
Energy and Emissions: Powering the Currency Lifecycle Responsibly
Behind every note and coin lies a supply chain powered by energy—mining metals, spinning cotton fibres, producing polymers, running heavy presses, transporting notes to banks and ATMs. Each stage draws from the global energy system, and each stage emits. Understanding and addressing this carbon footprint is one of the biggest sustainability challenges for the currency […]