Currency
In 2024, the Bank of Canada:
- provided Canadians with access to secure bank notes
- advanced work on the design and security features for the next $20 bank note
- researched the future of cash by monitoring the payments landscape and seeking input from Canadians
Providing Canadians with bank notes they can trust
The Bank is the only authority that can supply Canadian financial institutions with bank notes to meet the demand for cash. As at December 31, 2024, 3 billion bank notes were in circulation. Ensuring the security of Canada’s bank notes is a top priority for the Bank.
Keeping Canada’s counterfeiting rate low
As part of its ongoing efforts to curb counterfeiting, the Bank engages with a variety of stakeholders to raise awareness about how to identify genuine bank notes. It works to educate retailers, the lotto and gaming industry, and the general public, among other groups.
The Bank closely monitored counterfeiting trends in 2024. To support this work, the Bank collaborated with law enforcement partners such as the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and the Canada Border Services Agency.
As well, the Bank continued to explore novel security features for future bank notes. Incorporating leading-edge features helps keep the Bank one step ahead of counterfeiters.
These activities helped to keep the counterfeit level low. In 2024, this rate was at 9 parts per million (ppm), below the Bank’s target of 30 ppm. The low counterfeiting rate helps explain why more than 95% of Canadians in a recent Bank survey said they were confident that the bank notes circulating in the economy are authentic.
Bank staff pose with representatives from the Canada Border Services Agency, winners of the Bank of Canada’s 2024 Law Enforcement Award of Excellence for Counterfeit Deterrence (an award established in collaboration with the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police).
Preparing for the next $20 bank note
The Bank continued to advance the design and development of the next $20 bank note. The new note, which the Bank expects to issue in early 2027, will incorporate new and enhanced security features and be printed on polymer, primarily in green and with a vertical orientation.
The new $20 will feature His Majesty King Charles III on the front and the Canadian National Vimy Memorial on the back, as announced by the Minister of Finance. For other elements of the design, the Bank consulted historical and cultural experts, including the Indigenous Advisory Circle.
The Canadian National Vimy Memorial in Givenchy-en-Gohelle, France, will be featured on the vertical $20 bank note.
Tracking the evolution of the payments landscape
The Bank conducted research on a variety of topics in 2024 to help it make decisions related to its currency mandate. Areas of research included:
- the use, availability and acceptance of cash in Canada
- payment preferences, including for digital currencies
- demand from international travellers for Canadian bank notes
- mobile device and digital payments
The Bank also continued to monitor the cash infrastructure system. It engaged with industry partners to ensure the ongoing availability of high-quality bank notes.
In addition, the Bank completed research on the implications of a retail central bank digital currency. This included exploring the potential impact of a Digital Canadian Dollar on the economy and financial system. With this work completed, the Bank is now shifting its focus to broader research topics and policy issues related to the payments system.
Looking forward
In 2025, the Bank will:
- finalize the design of the $20 bank note
- begin the design and development of the next $5 bank note featuring Terry Fox
- ensure bank notes remain secure by working on next-generation security features and collaborating with law enforcement partners to fight counterfeiting
- track the evolution of the payments landscape by conducting research on cash access and acceptance and monitoring the cash distribution system
More information
2023 Methods-of-Payment Survey Report: The Resilience of Cash
COVID‑19 Hasn’t Killed Merchant Acceptance of Cash: Results from the 2023 Merchant Acceptance Survey
The Role of Beliefs in Entering and Exiting the Bitcoin Market
Untapped Potential: Mobile Device Ownership and Mobile Payments in Canada