BOT issues new banknote series

BANGKOK, January 14 (TNA) - The Bank of Thailand (BOT) will issue a new series of banknotes next week, after the current series has been circulated in the Thai economy for more than 14 years. BOT Governor Prasarn Trairatvorakul told journalists that the new banknotes comprise five denominations, including 20, 50, 100, 500 and 1,000 baht, with their sizes and colours remaining unchanged from the present notes. Prasarn said that the new 50-baht banknote will be first released into the circulation on January 18, the date commemorating a glorious victory of Late King Naresuan the Great in a traditional royal combat on elephant back in 1593. According to the BOT chief, the Thai central bank has applied a most updated technology for a security feature for the new 50-baht banknote to prevent counterfeiting, including a watermark on which His Majesty King Bhumibol Adulyadej's portrait is shown on its right side and another watermark on which Thai numeral 50 is observed transparently. The BOT governor acknowledged that the new issue costs 5 baht each higher than the currently used notes, and that the current 50-baht banknote and those previously issued will also be legal tender by the Thai laws. There are about 190 million 50-baht banknotes currently circulate in the Thai economy. (TNA)