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The new currency in Egypt
The Central Bank of Egypt’s introduction of a 10-pound plastic banknote and a new coin provoked wide reactions and accusations of the Central Bank of Egypt copying their designs. How true are these accusations?
On Tuesday, the Central Bank of Egypt launched a plastic banknote of polymer ore in denominations of 10 pounds, emphasizing that none of the previous issues of the same denomination was canceled and continued to be used and circulated through exchange machines like any other monetary denomination.
The Central Bank of Egypt published a video on its YouTube page, explaining the specifications of the new currency, stressing that it was produced “using the latest banknote production lines applied in the world at the new printing house in the Administrative Capital.”
The Central Bank of Egypt indicated that this step comes with the aim of “raising the quality of banknotes in circulation in the Egyptian market, as plastic money is characterized by flexibility and strength, less thickness, and a long life span that reaches regarding three times the life of the current paper category.”
Is the design “stolen”?
The introduction of the new banknote aroused the interest of Egyptians through social media, and reactions and opinions varied regarding the shape and design of the new banknote.
Many spoke of the great similarity between the new Egyptian currency with its counterpart of the same category of British currency, the pound sterling, accusing the Central Bank of Egypt of “stealing” the design in all its details, both in terms of the shape and size of the line and even the degree of deviation of the face of the statue of Queen Hatshepsut, which is similar to the degree of The face of the British Queen.
But contrary to what was rumored regarding the responsibility of the Central Bank of Egypt for the new design of the currency, the one responsible for this was the British company De La Rue, which designs a large number of banknotes around the world, including the pound sterling.
“Lifestyle”
In a related context, the Egyptian artist Walid Yassin said on Facebook that the design of the new coin was “stolen from his best paintings without his knowledge” and that “theft has become a way of life,” he said.
photo released, facebook
The talk regarding “the theft of the designs of the new Egyptian currency” comes days following the Russian plastic artist, Georgy Korasov, accused the Egyptian designer, Ghada Wali, of “stealing” four paintings of his works, and using them on the murals of the “Kolyat al-Banat” metro station in the capital, Cairo. He prompted the National Authority for Tunnels to apologize and remove the stolen paintings from the Women’s College station.
sarcasm and humor
On the other hand, others greeted the new banknote with funny and sarcastic comments.
One of the tweets said that she would not accept the “Eid” that she would take on the day of Eid, except from the new paper.
With the difficulty of writing on the new currency, because it is made of plastic or polymer, a tweeter commented sarcastically: “The best thing regarding the new money is that we will not see your love written on it forever…”.
Others circulated rumors that the new banknote might be damaged if it was exposed to the high heat of the sun or other sources.
Specifications of the new banknote
- Printed from polymer plastic material
- It is characterized by its high resistance to dirt and moisture and is not affected by water.
- Expired papers can be recycled and turned into other useful things.
