The Philippines' Very Own Polymer P1,000 Bill Has Been Awarded 'Banknote of the Year'
International Banknote Society (IBS)'s annual "Banknote of the Year Award" has finally been named for 2022. And it's the Philippines' very own polymer P1,000 bill, making it the first Filipino banknote to bag the award.
“The Philippines’ successful design in eye-pleasing blue combines an endangered species with an environmental motif,” said the IBS. Our polymer P1,000 bill beat finalists like Algeria, Barbados, Egypt, Northern Ireland, and Scotland.
Our current P1,000 banknote, which had the national flower Sampaguita and the Philippine eagle, replaced the previous bill that featured Philippine heroes Vicente Lim, Josefa Llanes Escoda, and Jose Abad Santos. In December 2021, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas introduced the new design to the public, and was slated for release in April the following year. It was approved by the National Historical Institute.
Even Senator Aquilino "Koko" Pimentel III wanted the production of the bill to be suspended.
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On its reverse side, we can see the Tubbataha Reefs Natural Park, the South Sea Pearl, and the T'nalak weave design from the T'boli. The reef had previously been declared a World Heritage Site by the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization.
The bill was initially met with criticism for its cultural cost, how it favored flora and fauna over historical figures, as well as its unnecessary added risks. Previous warnings from the BSP had told citizens that these notes were not allowed to be folded or get wet. Authorities would debunk the concerns themselves by assuring the public that these denominations may still be used in case any of these unfortunate incidents happen.
The Philippines' current polymer banknotes use similar material to other bills in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom, among others.
