DESIGNED
$10 NOTE STARTS CIRCULATING TODAY
U.S. Treasury, Federal Reserve Board and U.S. Secret Service
Officials Spend First New $10 at the National Archives
Washington
- March 2, 2006 - The redesigned $10 note entered circulation
today at the National Archives, home of the U.S. Constitution,
which figures prominently in the new note’s design.
On
its first day in circulation, officials from the U.S. Treasury,
Federal Reserve Board and U.S. Secret Service used a new $10
note to purchase a pocket-sized copy of the U.S. Constitution
at the National Archives Shop. The phrase "We the People"
from the U.S. Constitution is featured on the face of the new
$10 note. Images of the Statue of Liberty’s torch are also
incorporated into the new design.
Today
is the redesigned $10 note’s day of issue, the day the
Federal Reserve System begins delivering the new notes to commercial
banks for distribution to businesses and the public worldwide.
The notes will begin circulating immediately in the United States
and will then be introduced in other countries in the days and
weeks ahead, as international banks place orders for $10 notes
from the Federal Reserve.
"Staying
ahead of would-be counterfeiters is a top priority of the U.S.
government, and in order to do that, our currency will need
to be redesigned every seven to 10 years," said United
States Treasurer Anna Cabral. "Through the introduction
of new designs with state-of-the-art security features, we will
continue to safeguard the integrity of U.S. currency and help
protect businesses and consumers."
The
new $10 note incorporates easy-to-use security features for
people to check their money and subtle background colors in
shades of orange, yellow and red.
While
consumers should not use color to check the authenticity of
their currency, color does add complexity to the note, making
counterfeiting more difficult. Different colors are being used
for different denominations, which will help everyone –
particularly those who are visually impaired – to tell
denominations apart.
"In
addition to recognizing the design elements and enhanced security
features of the new $10 note, it is important for the public
to know they will not need to trade in old notes for new ones,"
said Michael Lambert, Assistant Director of Federal Reserve
Bank Operations and Payment Systems. "Older-design notes
will maintain their full face value."
Since
unveiling the new $10 note design last September, the U.S. government
has distributed more than 10 million pieces of educational material
with information about the new $10 note to prepare businesses,
stakeholder organizations and consumers worldwide for the new
note’s issue.
"Each
time we issue a redesigned denomination, our goal is to ensure
its smooth transition into daily commerce both domestically
and abroad," said Bureau of Engraving and Printing Director
Larry Felix. "Over the past six months, we have worked
with manufacturers of ATMs and other machines that receive and
dispense cash, as well as retailers, small businesses and international
governments, so that they may prepare for today’s day of
issue of the redesigned $10 note."
"As
the permanent home of the U.S. Constitution, the National Archives
is pleased that the U.S. Treasury has featured the Constitution
in the new $10 bill," said Archivist of the United States
Allen Weinstein.
The
new $10 note – like the redesigned $20 and $50 that preceded
it – incorporates stateof- the-art security features to
combat counterfeiting, including three that are easy to use
by cash handlers and consumers alike:
Color-shifting
ink: Tilt your ten to check that the numeral "10"
in the lower righthand corner on the face of the note changes
color from copper to green.
Watermark: Hold the note up to the light to see if a faint image
of Treasury Secretary Alexander Hamilton appears to the right
of his large portrait. It should be visible from both sides
of the note. On the redesigned $10 note, it is easier than ever
to locate the watermark – a blank oval has been incorporated
into the design to highlight the watermark’s location.
Security thread: Security thread: Hold the note up to the light
and make sure there’s a small strip that repeats "USA
TEN" in tiny print. It should run vertically to the right
of the portrait.
"We
have always felt that an educated public is often our best defense
against crime," said Brian K. Nagel, Assistant Director,
Office of Investigations, the United States Secret Service.
"We encourage the public to familiarize themselves with
the updated security features in the redesigned notes so they
can ensure their currency is genuine and effectively safeguard
their hard-earned money."
Counterfeiting
of U.S. currency has been kept at low levels through a combination
of improvements in security features, aggressive law enforcement
and education efforts to inform the public about how to check
currency.
The
government estimates that fewer than 1 in 10,000 $10 notes is
a counterfeit. Yet, an increasing proportion of counterfeit
notes are produced using digital equipment. Since 1995, digitally
produced counterfeit notes have increased from less than 1 percent
of all counterfeits detected in the United States to about 52
percent in 2005.
Today’s
issue of a new $10 note was preceded by a new $20 note in 2003
and a new $50 note in 2004, each featuring enhanced design and
security features to protect the integrity of U.S. currency.
An
array of free educational materials, posters, handy "take
one" cards, training videos and CD-ROMs are available to
businesses, financial institutions, trade and professional associations,
citizen groups and individuals to prepare cash handlers and
consumers to recognize the new design and protect against counterfeits.
Materials are available in 24 languages to order or download
on-line at www.moneyfactory.gov/newmoney.
Since
2003, more then 70 million pieces of training materials have
been ordered by businesses, consumers, and industry associations
around the world to help train their cash-handling employees
about the notes’ enhanced security features.
