Popular £5 notes availability to increase

Thursday, 28 October 2010 12:00

Five pound notes have become sought after in the last few years. They are very useful, reduce the amount of coins you need in your pocket and the public wants to see more of them.

Following a successful pilot exercise undertaken by HSBC last year, major financial institutions and ATM operators are increasing the number of ATMs that dispense £5 notes.

The move follows years of encouragement by the Bank of England in its ongoing effort to increase the public availability and quality of £5 banknotes.

Bank of England Governor - Mervyn King - said: "By Easter next year, the number of £5 notes dispensed from ATMs should have increased five-fold. In addition, some other large retailers are also working to increase the number of £5 notes they give out as change, building on the findings of a pilot by Sainsbury's."

Together, these initiatives should increase the availability of £5 notes so that by 2012, an extra 400 million £5 notes will be entering circulation each year. The notes should also be sorted more often, so the average quality will improve too. The Governor said: "The fiver should start looking as smart as the three other denominations."

The Bank of England's key role has always been to ensure that the economy is supplied with the right quantity of money. Despite advances in other payments technology, the demand for banknotes continues to grow. People still value the convenience of paper money, and the Bank of England's role is to meet that demand. Opinion surveys show there is a particular demand for more £5 notes.

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