The Bank of Mexico (Banco de Mexico - Banxico) will issue a new 50 Peso plastic banknote with a polymer substrata, which will begin to circulate during the second part of 2006. It will completely replace paper banknotes by the close of 2006.

Jaime Pacreu Vizcaya, general director of the central bhank, stated that 320 million polymer banknotes will be manufactured for the gradual replacement of the paper note. Nevertheless, he specified that the issuance of plastic bills is more expensive than paper. "The use of this material is financially income producing for the Bank of Mexico due to the larger useful life span of the polymer banknote."

This time around, the 50 peso banknote issue will be carried completely out by the paper money factory of Mexico.

The plastic 50 peso note will be very similar in its design and color to the one presently used, and Banxico will attempt to have the same transparent window as the 20 peso polymer banknote has.

He explained that this decision was taken after the performance of the 20 Peso plastic banknote, and Banxico concluded that it would obtain important savings. From the analysis of the 20 peso polymer banknote, the Bank of Mexico determined that the average life of the bill is 28.8 months, which would permit a printing saving of 42 per cent compared with a 8.3 month average use life of a corresponding paper banknote.

Due to everything stated above, Banxico made two decisions: The manufacture of a 20 peso polymer banknote would definitely be carried out; and the 50 Peso note will also be manufactured in a plastic material.

Banxico began a project to increase the durability and improve the quality of circulating Mexican banknotes in 1996. In 2000 the polymer banknote project got started.

Upon reviewing international experience in these matters, it was found that only Australia had any experience with polymer banknotes. They were issued in 1988 when banknotes manufactured with this substrata were placed in circulation. On September 30, 2002, Banxico placed into circulation its 20 peso polymer banknote.

In August 2003 it conducted an opinion survey among people 18 years of age or older in cities of more than 50,000 inhabitants, conducting a total of more than 2,200 interviews.

Eighty-four percent (84%) of those interviewed stated that the plastic banknote seemed cleaner and more hygienic then their paper counterparts. Thirty-four (34%) of those interviewed responded that what displeased them the most was that these banknotes tear easily, and five percent (5%) responded that they frequently received torn banknotes. In this regrd, Jaime Pacreu affirmed that Banxico is conducting this evaluation because so many people think these banknotes rip so easily, and they are taking measures to avoid this in the future.

Fifty-nine (59%) of those interviewed responded that they would prefer to use the polymer note, 22% would prefer paper notes, and 18% would like the 20 peso metallic coin.

Sixty-eight (68%) of the people responded that they would like other denominations to be fabricated in polymer. The central bank concluded that polymer banknotes have been well accepted.

SOURCE: Notafilia.com
Translated by James S. Cameron
(Taken from El Financiero Mexico, 27 enero 2005