MANILA, Philippines – By January 2016, the P100 bill will come in a different color to easily distinguish it from the similarly colored P1,000 banknotes.
Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) Governor Amando Tetangco Jr. announced on Sunday, October 25, that the new P100 bill would have a different shade of blue.
"It will have a different shade actually, mauve from bluish gray. It will have the same design but only different in color,” Tetangco said.
This is BSP's response to complaints saying that it is difficult to differentiate the P100 and P1,000 banknotes. Both bills, which are part of the New Generation Currency (NGC) banknotes released in 2010, look similar in terms of color.
“There are instances wherein consumers pay the P1,000 bill instead of the P100 bill especially at night. With the new P100 bill, they could easily distinguish it from the P1,000 bill,” he said.
The security features in the current P100 bills, placed to protect against counterfeiters, will remain.
Meanwhile, the BSP reminded the public that the very old version of bills – the New Denomination Series (NDS) banknotes launched in 1985 – can be used only until December 2015.
Starting January 2016, only the NGC bills would be in circulation.
The old NDS banknotes – which will be demonetized in January 2017 – could still be exchanged in banks and BSP offices until December 2016. – Rappler.com