BSP orients businesses in Gensan on counterfeit money

Sunday 6th of May 2012

GENERAL SANTOS CITY, May 6 (PIA) -- The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) recently conducted an orientation among business establishments here against the proliferation of fake peso bills in the market.

Cecilia C. Hortal, BSP senior currency specialist said business establishments should be more vigilant in identifying the security features of the new generation currency (NGC) so that they will not be victimized by counterfeiters.

Hortal explained that the NGC is more colorful with features that are difficult to copy like embossed prints, serial number, security fibers, watermark, see-through mark, concealed value, and security thread.

She disclosed that the P500 and P1,000 banknotes contain additional features such as optically variable device and another optically variable ink for the P1,000 banknote, which is hard for counterfeiters to fake.

Ordinary people, she said, can also apply the feel, look, and tilt (FLT) technique in determining whether or not the denomination is genuine.

The new banknotes, which were launched in December 2010, are not smooth but a little rough to touch because they are made from cotton and the Philippine abaca.

Serial numbers are composed of one or two prefix letters and six to seven digits in asymmetrical or increasing size.

When viewed against the light, the watermark on the blank space shows a shadow image of the portrait and the banknote's denomination; this can be seen on either side of the bill.

Security threads are readily observed on the banknotes when observed against a light source. In 20 and 50 denominations the security thread is continuous and 2 mm in width but in 100, 200, 500 and 1,000 denominations this is 4 mm wide, metallic and stitch-like.

Meanwhile, the BSP opined that it is advantageous for business establishments to have a counterfeit money detector especially that reproduction of fake bills has become easier because of technology.

BSP also urged people who have information about counterfeiting operations to report immediately to authorities or get in touch with the nearest BSP office. (DED/PGFruylan/PIA 12, GenSan)