One of Danmarks Nationalbank’s objectives is to promote safe payments. This is done by ensuring that the quality of the security and design features of banknotes and coins is so high that people have confidence in them.
Danmarks Nationalbank has a monopoly on producing banknotes and coins in the Kingdom of Denmark. Originally, the King was responsible for manufacturing money, but with the establishment of ‘Nationalbanken i Kjøbenhavn’ as a private limited company in 1818, this monopoly was transferred to the bank. Nevertheless, Danish coins still bear a reference to the Crown with motifs such as the royal crown, the national coat of arms, the Queen’s monogram and portraits of the royal family. Danmarks Nationalbank decides which motifs to put on Danish banknotes and coins.
Society’s demand for new banknotes and coins has been falling for some years. The latest figures from 2019 show that only 16 per cent of payments in physical stores today are cash payments. In 2014, Danmarks Nationalbank therefore decided to initiate a process to discontinue the internal printing of banknotes and minting of coins in the course of 2016. Here you can see a film about the production of banknotes, coins and medals at Danmarks Nationalbank (in Danish) as it was done up to 2016.
First banknotes from France in 2020
Today, Danish coins are produced in Finland, and the first of these coins are already in circulation. In future, banknotes will be produced in France. The first of these will be delivered in 2020.
The first banknotes from France will be put into circulation in early summer 2020. Initially, a new 500-krone banknote. In the coming years, other banknotes will also be issued in new versions. But it is important to note that, basically, their appearance will not be changed significantly. The new banknotes will to a high degree look like the ones we already have. There are slight differences, however, so it will be possible to tell a difference. The differences will all concern new security features, which are added to the banknotes.
The current banknotes are also highly secure, but Danmarks Nationalbank has chosen to take the opportunity to upgrade the security of the banknotes, so that it will be even more difficult to produce counterfeit banknotes. For example with a new distinctive security thread on the face of the banknotes. The new banknotes (2009A series) will be in circulation in parallel with the current banknotes (2009 series). And you therefore do not need to exchange the banknotes you already have. You can thus continue to use banknotes and coins as usual.
Before the new banknotes are put into circulation, further information will be provided about them on this page. Moreover, an information folder on the new banknotes will be distributed to all households.