Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) issued a $50 dollar banknote on Tuesday in addition to the $2, $5, $10, and $20 notes which are already in circulation.
RBZ governor John Mangudya said the higher denomination has been issued through Statutory Instrument 196 of 2021.
Here are the security features of the $50 banknote:
- Banknotes have a unique rough feel which is different from other printed materials such as magazines or computer printouts.
- Watermark: When held against the light the Zimbabwe bird and ‘RBZ’ can be seen. In reverse, this will appear backwards.
- Windowed Security Strip: The strip changes from red to green with a holographic element when tilted. When held up to the light it reads as a continuous line reading ‘50’ on the front and ‘RBZ 50’ on the back.
- See-through: Locate the shape above the watermark. Hold the note up to the light. The shape completes with the image on the back of the note to form the Zimbabwe bird in a star.
- Iridescent Band: when the note is tilted. Moving the note around shows a shiny stripe pattern on the back of the note. The stripe shows the denomination of the banknote.
- Feature for the partially sighted: Six horizontal bars appear in the bottom right and left-hand corners. These have a raised effect to help the partially sighted recognise this banknote.
- The value numeral can be seen in the feature on the bottom left when the note is tilted.