Banco Central de Venezuela (BCV) has added two new denominations to its modern Bolívar (Digital) banknote series: the 200- and 500-bolívar (digital) banknotes were put into circulation on August 16, 2024. The new denominations join five previously issued denominations in the series: 5, 10, 20, 50, and 100 Bolívar Digital. The notes were issued as part of the monetary reform initiated in 2021 which resulted in one digital bolívar (VED) being equal to 1,000,000 bolívares soberanos (VES). The first several denominations were issued to commemorate the 200th anniversary of the Battle of Carabobo.
The 200- and 500-bolívar notes are similar to the rest of the series, but the design has a twist. Like the previously issued denominations in the series, the 200 and 500 bolívar banknotes are printed on paper, and the designs on the front sides have a vertical orientation. However, the image on the face of the new notes is a montage of three different portraits of Simon Bolívar (representing three different time periods). Another change from previous issues in the series: the newer denominations depict the naval battle of Lake Maracaibo and the Rafael Urdaneta Bridge on the back side.
Here we take a closer look at the new banknotes:
500-Bolívar (Digital) banknote
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200-Bolívar (Digital) banknote
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Both the 200 and 500 Bolívares (Digital) notes share similar design and security features such as:
- Tactile printing that you can feel by touch
- A watermark with the image of Simón Bolívar and “BCV” (the bank acronym)
- Letterpress printing in red (the serial numbers), fluoresces under ultraviolet (UV) light
- See-through register shaped like the outline of Venezuela’s borders, and the acronym “BCV”
- A metallic, windowed security thread with the bank acronym “BCV.”
- Microtexts
- Fluorescent fibers
- Fluorescent yellow ink, visible under ultraviolet (UV) light, in several areas (front and back).
- Optically variable ink (on the 500 bolívar note) – Depending on the viewing angle, the color of the large denomination (‘500’) on the front changes from green to magenta.
Sources/References:
Banco Central de Venezuela
MRI Bankers’ Guide to Foreign Currency
Notafilia
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