Colorful Money

The new, more colorful $20 bill has hit the streets. There should be new bills in your cash drawers and ATMs. As color goes, the purpose was to make counterfeiting more difficult, not to increase the aesthetics of our paper money. That could explain why the new $20 bills look a bit like someone spilled coffee or tea on them. They have color-shifting ink that we must learn to recognize, along with a watermark and a security thread. Just remember that the new money was distributed by the FRB, not Starbucks. And be sure anyone who handles cash is trained on the new look.

Copyright © 2003 Compliance Action. Originally appeared in Compliance Action, Vol. 8, No. 11, 11/03