New $100 Bill Unveiled

[EpyonXero]

I remember being in middle school when the big face $100s first came out.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB1000...s_Most_Popular

U.S. Unveils New $100 Bill Article Video Interactive Graphics By DARRELL A. HUGHES

Associated Press

Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner, from left, Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke, and U.S. Secret Service Deputy Director Keith Prewitt, watch the security features of the new design of the $100 bill as it is unveiled at the Treasury Department.

WASHINGTON—Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner and Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke unveiled a new $100 bill equipped with two new security features.

The bill will go into circulation Feb. 10, 2011.

The Fed, along with the Treasury Department, the Bureau of Engraving and Printing and the U.S. Secret Service, "continuously monitor the counterfeiting threats" for each denomination and redesign decisions are made based on those threats, Mr. Bernanke said.

"This job has become more complex in recent years as technology advances and U.S. dollar flows expand and increase," he added.

More
Real Time Econ: Treasury Introduces New $100 Bill The bill—the highest denomination of all U.S. notes—circulates widely around the world, with circulation in the past 25 years growing to $890 billion from $180 billion.

The New $100 Bill
0:33
The redesigned $100 note includes two new, advanced counterfeit-deterrent security features that are easy for consumers and merchants to check when verifying authenticity.
About two-thirds of all $100 notes circulate outside the U.S.; Mr. Bernanke said the agencies must ensure people around the world are aware of the design change. Over the next several months, officials at the agencies will work to educate cash handlers, consumers and others about the design and explain how to use its security features.

The New $100 Bill
Benjamin Franklin is still on the latest makeover of the $100 bill, unveiled Wednesday, but he has been joined by a number of security features as part of an effort to stay ahead of counterfeiters.

View Interactive
The 6.5 billion or so $100 notes in circulation now will remain legal tender, Mr. Bernanke said.

The new bill's security features include a blue 3-D Security Ribbon on the front of the note that contains images of bells and 100s, which move and change from one to the other as you tilt the note, according to joint release from the agencies.

Another security feature is the "Bell in the Inkwell" image that changes color from copper to green when the note is tilted, an effect that makes it appear and disappear within the inkwell. (For more on the redesigned note and its features, visit www.newmoney.gov.)

"As with previous U.S. currency redesigns, this note incorporates the best technology available to ensure we're staying ahead of counterfeiters," Mr. Geithner said.

The new design for the $100 note retains three effective security features from the previous design: the portrait watermark of Benjamin Franklin, the security thread, and the color-shifting numeral 100.

Write to Darrell A. Hughes at darrell.hughes@dowjones.com