Es2 - 2nd Series Of Euro Notes, With Eur50 First

...shamelessly right-clicked from the NB of Kyrgyzstan

Currently the European Central Bank (ECB) is preparing a new series of Euro banknotes that will gradually substitute the operating banknotes.

ES2 Euro series will be issued gradually, by one nominal value. The first banknote of new series - a 50 Euro banknote - will be issued in January 2011. Brian Dennis, the ECB Monetary Department Head, announced about it at the recent "Banknotes 2008" Conference held in Washington (USA).

As opposed to the first series of ES1 Euro, which was subdivided into two categories by nominal values (low nominal values and high nominal values), with similar specifications for each, the second series of ES2 Euro will be subdivided into three categories (low, medium and high) with different priorities in protection levels and wear resistance.

Medium category includes the banknotes applied for cash machines and the most counterfeited nominal values; it will be the first to be circulated in 2011, starting from 50 Euro. Later on, the new version of 100 and 20 Euro will be issued.

The basic priority criterion for two low nominal values of 5 and 10 Euro banknotes is their wear resistance.


Specifications for high nominal values of 200 and 500 euro banknotes will comply with their application as a means of hoarding.

Final efforts on approving specifications and design of the banknotes will be completed by July 2008. The pilot production of 100 million banknotes with nominal value of 50 euro will be performed in September 2008 by several producers simultaneously.

If all the production issues are solved successfully, the gross production in the amount of 4.5 billion banknotes with nominal value of 50 Euro will start in Q3, 2009 and be completed by January 2011.