Banknotes of the Swiss franc

The ninth series of the Swiss franc, currently in circulation. As of 2022, the Swiss 1000-franc banknote is the world's 2nd highest value currently-issued banknote, after the Brunei $10,000 bill (worth around 6,900 Swiss francs in 2022), followed by the Singapore $1,000 note (worth around 678 CHF) and the 500 euro note (worth around 490 CHF), was demonetised.

Banknotes of the Swiss franc are issued by the Swiss National Bank in denominations of 10, 20, 50, 100, 200 and 1,000 Swiss francs.

Between 2016 and 2019, the eighth series, while remaining valid, was being replaced by the ninth series. All banknotes starting from the sixth series are exchangeable; banknotes from the fifth series ceased to be valid and were fully demonetised on 1 May 2000.

History

The first banknotes in Switzerland were issued in 1825 by the Caisse de dépôt of the city of Bern.[1]

During the 19th century the cantons (states) of Switzerland had the right to print their own notes. Following the law of 8 March 1881 the Swiss National Bank had the exclusive right to issue banknotes in Switzerland. Its first notes were issued in 1907. Since then, nine series of Swiss franc notes have been printed, six of which have been completely released for use by the general public, and a new series started being released in 2016.

Switzerland is unusual among affluent countries in that it used to expire its banknotes; the Swiss National Bank has declared several older series of banknotes to be no longer legal tender some time after introducing newer series.[2] Notes from these "recalled" series could be exchanged for still-valid notes at the National Bank for up to 20 years after the date of recall, after which the notes lost all value. When recalled series become valueless, the National Bank transfers an amount of money equal to the sum of the now-worthless notes to a state-run last-resort disaster insurance fund, the Swiss Fund for Aid in Cases of Uninsurable Damage by Natural Forces.[3] In June 2019, the Swiss parliament passed a bill that removed the twenty-year time limit. Effective 1 January 2020, all banknotes starting from the sixth series issued in 1976 as well as any future series remain valid and can be exchanged for current notes indefinitely.[2][3][4][5]

In April 2021, the Swiss National Bank announced that it was recalling its eighth series of banknotes issued between 1995 and 1998; the series was replaced by the ninth series launched between 2016 and 2019.[6] In May 2021, the old banknotes lost their status as legal tender and are no longer valid for payments.[6]

Overview

Overview of all series of Swiss banknotes[7]
Series Introduction Date recalled Valueless since Designer Remark
1st 1907 1 July 1925 1 July 1945 Josef Storck and Albert Walch Changeover notes, similar to notes used by earlier banks
2nd 1911 1 October 1958 1 October 1978 Eugène Burnand, Ferdinand Hodler, S. Balzer
3rd 1918 1 July 1925 1 July 1945 Orell Füssli War notes; only partially issued
4th — — — Victor Surbeck and Hans Erni Reserve series, never issued
5th 1956 1 May 1980 1 May 2000 Pierre Gauchat and Marcus Korsten
6th 1976 1 May 2000 — Ernst and Ursula Hiestand No longer legal tender, can be exchanged at full nominal value at Swiss National Bank[8]
7th — — — Elisabeth and Roger Pfund Reserve series; never issued
8th 1995 to 1998 30 April 2021 — Jörg Zintzmeyer Recalled April 30, 2021 [9]
9th 12 April 2016 — — Manuela Pfrunder Current series; introduced 2016 to 2019

All series of Swiss banknotes

First series

1st series of Swiss banknotes[10]
Image Value Dimensions Main colour Description Date of
Obverse Reverse Obverse Reverse issue withdrawal lapse
50 francs 166 × 103 mm Green/Yellow Helvetia Ornaments 20 June 1907 1 July 1925 1 July 1945
100 francs 183 × 116 mm Blue Helvetia Ornaments
500 francs 199 × 126 mm Green Helvetia Ornaments
1000 francs 215 × 132 mm Purple Helvetia Ornaments
These images are to scale at 0.7 pixel per millimetre. For table standards, see the banknote specification table.

Second series

The second series of Swiss banknotes was issued between 1911 and 1914.

2nd series of Swiss banknotes[11]
Image Value Dimensions Main colour Description Date of Notes
Obverse Reverse Obverse Reverse issue withdrawal lapse
5 francs 148 × 70 mm Brown/Green William Tell Ornaments 3 August 1914 1 May 1980 1 May 2000
10 francs 135 × 82 mm Brown/Yellow Woman from Neuchâtel Ornaments — — — Reserve note
20 francs 163 × 95 mm Blue/purple Vreneli Ornaments 31 July 1914 31 December 1935 1 January 1956
50 francs 165 × 106 mm Green Woman's head Woodcutter 22 December 1911 1 October 1958 1 October 1978
100 francs 181 × 115 mm Dark blue Woman's head Reaper 16 September 1911 1 October 1958 1 October 1978
500 francs 200 × 125 mm Red/Brown Woman's head Embroideres 24 December 1912 1 October 1958 1 October 1978
1000 francs 216 × 131 mm Purple/Orange Woman's head Foundry 16 September 1911 1 October 1958 1 October 1978
These images are to scale at 0.7 pixel per millimetre. For table standards, see the banknote specification table.

Third series

The third series of Swiss banknotes was printed in 1918; some of the notes were issued as war notes, while others were kept as reserve.[12]

Fourth series

The fourth series of Swiss banknotes was printed in 1938 as a reserve series and was never issued.

4th series of Swiss banknotes[13]
Image Value Dimensions Main colour Description Date of issue
Obverse Reverse Obverse Reverse
50 francs 167 × 96 mm Green Woman's head Bull Never issued (reserve series)
100 francs 190 × 106 mm Blue Woman from Haslital Ornaments
500 francs 210 × 116 mm Brown-red Woman's head Chemistry
1000 francs 228 × 125 mm Purple Woman's head Turbine
These images are to scale at 0.7 pixel per millimetre. For table standards, see the banknote specification table.

Fifth series

The fifth series of Swiss banknotes was issued starting in 1957.

5th series of Swiss banknotes[14]
Image Value Dimensions Main colour Description Designer Date of
Obverse Reverse Obverse Reverse issue withdrawal lapse
10 francs 137 × 75 mm Red-brown Gottfried Keller Bennet blossoms Hermann Eidenbenz 1 October 1956 1 May 1980 1 May 2000
20 francs 155 × 85 mm Blue Guillaume-Henri Dufour Thistle 29 March 1956
50 francs 173 × 95 mm Green Head of a girl Apple harvest Pierre Gauchat 14 June 1957
100 francs 191 × 105 mm Dark blue Head of a boy St Martin 14 June 1957
500 francs 210 × 115 mm Brown-red Head of a woman Fountain of Youth 14 June 1957
1000 francs 228 × 125 mm Purple Head of woman Danse Macabre 14 June 1957
These images are to scale at 0.7 pixel per millimetre. For table standards, see the banknote specification table.

Sixth series

6th series of Swiss banknotes[15]
Image Value Dimensions Main colour Description Date of
Obverse Reverse Obverse Reverse issue withdrawal lapse
10 francs 137 × 66 mm Red Leonhard Euler Water turbine, the solar system and a scheme of propagation of rays of light passing through lenses 5 November 1979 1 May 2000 none (abolished)[16]
20 francs 148 × 70 mm Blue Horace-Bénédict de Saussure Mountain range, a group of alpinists and the Ammonshorn 4 April 1979
50 francs 159 × 74 mm Green Conrad Gessner Eagle owl, primula, stars 4 October 1978
100 francs 170 × 78 mm Dark blue Francesco Borromini Upper part of the dome-tower as well as the floor plan of the church Sant'Ivo alla Sapienza 4 October 1976
500 francs 181 × 82 mm Brown Albrecht von Haller Muscular figure of a human body, graph of respiration and the circulation of the blood, and a purple orchis 4 April 1977
1000 francs 192 × 86 mm Purple Auguste Forel Three ants and a cross-section of an anthill 4 April 1978
These images are to scale at 0.7 pixel per millimetre. For table standards, see the banknote specification table.

Seventh series

A seventh series of Swiss banknotes was designed and printed in 1984, in parallel with the sixth series, but was never released. It formed the reserve series, to be released, for example, if the current series were suddenly to become widely counterfeited. At first, almost no information was released on the series for security reasons, except for small fragments. However, after the eighth series was released, it was decided to improve the security features of the current series rather than develop a new reserve series. The details of the seventh series were later released, while the actual banknotes were destroyed. The designers were Roger Pfund and Elisabeth Pfund. They had originally won the competition for the design of the sixth series, but since the Swiss National Bank decided to use the design by Ernst and Ursula Hiestand instead, the Pfunds were charged with the design of the reserve series.[17][18]

7th series of Swiss banknotes[15]
Image Value Dimensions Main colour Description Date of issue
Obverse Reverse Obverse Reverse
10 francs 137 × 66 mm Red-brown Leonhard Euler; development of the polyhedron, the bridges of Königsberg Gamma function; table for the calculation of numbers; diagram of the Solar System Never issued (reserve series)
20 francs 148 × 70 mm Blue Horace-Bénédict de Saussure; quartz crystals; Hornblende beam Hair hygrometer, view of the valley of Chamonix and the Mont Blanc massif; expedition to the Tacul glacier
50 francs 159 × 74 mm Green Conrad Gessner; branch of a dwarf cherry tree; foliage of the bush Golden eagle (based on a woodcut from Gessner's Historiae animalium); "Metamorphosis of animals"; Latin text from the Historiae Animalium referring to the seven-headed hydra
100 francs 170 × 78 mm Dark blue Francesco Borromini; architectural motif from the Basilica of St. John Lateran Raising of the lantern and the spire of Sant'Ivo alla Sapienza; floor plan of San Carlo alle Quattro Fontane; dove and olive branch
500 francs 181 × 82 mm Brown Albrecht von Haller; hexagonal structure of the cell; cell tissue 18th century anatomy plate; x-ray of the human thorax; mountains, referring to his poem "The Alps"
1000 francs 192 × 86 mm Purple Louis Agassiz; structure of the surface of a shellfish Head, skeleton and fossil of a perch; structure of the scales of a perch; ammonite
These images are to scale at 0.7 pixel per millimetre. For table standards, see the banknote specification table.

Eighth series

The eighth series of Swiss franc banknotes, designed by Jörg Zintzmeyer, entered circulation in 1995. They were withdrawn in 2021.

8th series of Swiss banknotes[19]
Image Value Dimensions Main colour Obverse Reverse Date of
Obverse Reverse issue withdrawal
10 francs 74 × 126 mm Yellow Le Corbusier Ground plan, government district of Indian city of Chandigarh 8 April 1995 30 April 2021
20 francs 74 × 137 mm Red Arthur Honegger Mouvement symphonique Pacific 231 1 October 1994
50 francs 74 × 148 mm Green Sophie Taeuber-Arp Tête Dada, 1919 3 October 1995
100 francs 74 × 159 mm Blue Alberto Giacometti L'Homme qui marche I 1 October 1998
200 francs 74 × 170 mm Brown Charles Ferdinand Ramuz Lac de Derborence (Les Diablerets), Lavaux 1 October 1997
1000 francs 74 × 181 mm Purple Jacob Burckhardt Palazzo Strozzi, Firenze 1 April 1998
For table standards, see the banknote specification table.

Ninth series

In 2005, the Swiss National Bank held a competition to determine the design of the next series of banknotes. The competition was won by Manuel Krebs, but his designs, which include depictions of blood cells and embryos, were met with sufficient opposition from the general public as to discourage the bank from going forward with them.[20] As a result, the ninth series of Swiss franc banknotes was based on designs by second place finalist Manuela Pfrunder.[21] The series was scheduled to be issued around 2010 but was delayed to 2015 due to technical problems in the production.[22][23] The new 50-franc banknote was issued on 12 April 2016, followed by the 20-franc banknote on 17 May 2017, the 10-franc banknote on 18 October 2017, the 200-franc banknote on 22 August 2018, the 1,000-franc banknote on 13 March 2019 and the 100-franc banknote on 12 September 2019.

9th (current) series of Swiss banknotes[24]
Image Value Dimensions Main colour Theme
(a typically Swiss characteristic)		 Obverse
(an action)		 Reverse
(a Swiss location
and an object)		 Date of issue
Obverse Reverse
10 francs 70 × 123 mm Yellow Switzerland's organisational talent
Key motif: Time
  • A pair of female hands conducting the time with a baton.
  • Globe: around the International Date Line, "End of Day" (Bering Strait, Pacific Ocean), with the time zone borders drawn on top of it.
  • Clock faces form the background on the front of the note.
  • Security strip: The Swiss rail network and its longest tunnels are depicted on the security strip.
  • Two rail tracks connecting in the Lötschberg Base Tunnel, part of the world's most dense railway network reducing the Time for traversing the Alps.
  • Watch's movement : the watch's movement symbolises the country's strong organisational talent.
  • Rail network: The lines on the back of the note depict a section of Switzerland's rail network.

[25]

18 October 2017
20 francs 70 × 130 mm Red Switzerland's creativity
Key motif: Light
  • A boyish right hand holding a prism into a light beam so that the light is dispersed into various colours.
  • Globe: 4 hours earlier (Pacific Ocean, North-America) and the motif of light is echoed in star constellations over the globe.
  • The background of the note is reminiscent of a kaleidoscope in which colourful patterns are produced through reflected light.
  • Security strip: Night-time light emissions are overlaid on a map of Switzerland and the surrounding regions, and the distances between various celestial bodies and the earth are listed in light seconds.
  • Light beaming a movie to a large outdoor screen on the Piazza Grande in Locarno during the Locarno Film Festival.
  • Butterfly: Light reveals the colour of the butterfly's wings and allows us to behold the rich diversity of nature.
  • Iris: The lines on the back portray an iris, which regulates the amount of light entering the human eye.
 17 May 2017
50 francs 70 × 137 mm Green Wealth of experiences Switzerland offers
Key motif: Wind
  • Left hand holding a dandelion with flowing, silky pappi carried forth by the wind.
  • Globe: another 4 hours earlier (Africa, Atlantic Ocean, South America, North America) and the arrows on the globe show the direction of the winds that connect Switzerland with other regions and continents.
  • Background pattern: Wind flow arrows
  • Security strip: Mountains evoke Switzerland's varied landscapes. The security strip shows the Alps and lists the names of the main four-thousand-metre peaks in the Swiss Alps, from A for Aletschhorn to Z for Zumsteinspitze.
  • Wind streaming around the glaciated mountain peaks of the Swiss Alps.
  • Paraglider: The wind, the note's key motif, holds the paraglider aloft in the mountains.
  • Contour lines: The contour lines evoke Switzerland's varied landscapes.
 12 April 2016
100 francs 70 × 144 mm Blue Switzerland's humanitarian tradition
Key motif: Water
  • A pair of hands holding and providing water
  • Globe: another 4 hours earlier (Europe, Africa) and the isobars and contour lines drawn on a globe joining places of equal average high and low atmospheric pressure reduced to sea level for a specified period of time.
  • Security strip: The rivers flowing through Switzerland are shown and listed in the security strip.
  • Water flowing alongside a vertical mountain side in the dry Valais
  • wooden German: Suonen/French: des bisses
 12 September 2019[26]
200 francs 70 × 151 mm Brown Switzerland's scientific expertise
Key motif: Matter
  • Right hand pointing to the three dimensions (right-hand rule)
  • Globe: another 4 hours earlier (Africa, Europe, Middle East, Indian Ocean, Asia) with the Earth's land masses during the Late Cretaceous period superimposed
  • Security strip: An abstract map of the geological ages of Switzerland and a timeline showing some of the stages in the formation of the universe are shown on the security strip.
22 August 2018[26]
1000 francs 70 × 158 mm Purple Switzerland's communicative flair
Key motif: Language
  • Two right hands of different persons shaking hands
  • Globe: another 4 hours earlier, "Start of Day" (Eastern Asia, Australia) with IPA letters
  • Security strip: The map on the security strip shows the language regions of Switzerland and its neighbouring countries; in addition, the names of all Swiss cantons are listed.
  • Holding speeches in different languages in the Swiss parliament during the Federal Assembly at Bern
  • Relation graph
 13 March 2019[26]
For table standards, see the banknote specification table.

Security and counterfeiting

The eighth banknote series possesses at least eighteen security features.[27]

According to the 2008 edition of Guinness World Records, the eighth series of Swiss franc notes is the most secure in the world with up to 18 security features including a tilting digit, which can only be seen from an unusual angle, a UV digit that can only be seen under ultraviolet light and micro text.[28] According to their respective central banks, the rate of counterfeited banknotes as of 2011 was about 1 in 100,000 for the Swiss franc, 1 in 20,000 for the euro, 1 in 10,000 for the United States dollar and 1 in 3,333 for the pound sterling.[29]

See also

Notes and references

  1. ^ Billets de banque in German, French and Italian in the online Historical Dictionary of Switzerland.; A. Meier: Monnaies....
  2. ^ a b Blackstone, Brian (20 October 2017). "Switzerland's Old-Money Problem: One Billion in Expiring Francs". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 25 June 2018.
  3. ^ a b "Questions and answers on banknotes – What does 'the SNB is recalling banknotes from circulation' actually mean?". Swiss National Bank. Retrieved 24 June 2018.
  4. ^ "Ständerat hat eingelenkt – Alte Banknoten werden künftig nicht mehr verfallen". Schweizer Radio und Fernsehen (SRF) (in German). 5 June 2019. Retrieved 7 January 2020.
  5. ^ "CC 941.10 Federal Act of 22 December 1999 on Currency and Payment Instruments (CPIA)". www.admin.ch. Retrieved 7 January 2020.
  6. ^ a b "Swiss National Bank recalls old series of banknotes". Reuters. 28 April 2021. Retrieved 22 May 2021.
  7. ^ All banknote series of the SNB, on the website of the Swiss National Bank. Last accessed 1 June 2007.
  8. ^ "Swiss National Bank (SNB) – Sixth banknote series (1976)". www.snb.ch. Retrieved 7 January 2020.
  9. ^ "Swiss National Bank (SNB) - Banknotes and coins".
  10. ^ First banknote series 1907, on the website of the Swiss National Bank. Last accessed 1 June 2007.
  11. ^ Second banknote series 1911, on the website of the Swiss National Bank. Last accessed 1 June 2007.
  12. ^ Third banknote series 1918, on the website of the Swiss National Bank. Last accessed 1 June 2007.
  13. ^ Fourth banknote series 1938, on the website of the Swiss National Bank. Last accessed 1 June 2007.
  14. ^ Fifth banknote series 1957, on the website of the Swiss National Bank. Last accessed 30 September 2007.
  15. ^ a b Sixth banknote series 1976, on the website of the Swiss National Bank. Last accessed 1 June 2007.
  16. ^ "Swiss National Bank (SNB) - All SNB banknote series".
  17. ^ Seventh banknote series, on the website of the Swiss National Bank. Last accessed 30 September 2007.
  18. ^ Jean-Marc Côté, "Habiller l'argent : Roger Pfund Archived 7 December 2006 at the Wayback Machine", Bulletin de l'Association des Numismates Francophones du Canada. Last accessed 1 June 2007.
  19. ^ "Eighth banknote series, 1995". Zurich, Switzerland: Swiss National Bank SNB. May 2017. Retrieved 26 May 2017.
  20. ^ "7 Interesting Facts about the New Swiss Banknotes". Newly Swissed. 26 September 2015. Retrieved 17 March 2020.
  21. ^ New banknotes project Archived 19 May 2007 at the Wayback Machine on the website of the Swiss National Bank. Last accessed 1 June 2007.
  22. ^ Curtis, Malcolm (27 March 2013). "Swiss money really is dirty: UK scientists". The Local (Switzerland edition). Retrieved 3 July 2013. The Swiss National Bank, responsible for producing Switzerland's money, is planning to introduce new banknotes in 2015 after several delays due to technical problems with paper.
  23. ^ Press release of 13 december 2012: Issue of new banknote series delayed. Archived 25 March 2014 at the Wayback Machine Last accessed 5 September 2012
  24. ^ "New banknotes for Switzerland". Zurich, Switzerland: Swiss National Bank SNB. May 2017. Retrieved 26 May 2017.
  25. ^ "Schriftzug: Die neue 10-Franken-Note". Schweizerische Südostbahn, Schriftzug. 4 February 2019. Archived from the original on 4 February 2019. Retrieved 30 July 2024.
  26. ^ a b c "Banknotes and coins: The transition to a new banknote series". Zurich, Switzerland: Swiss National Bank (SNB). Retrieved 5 March 2019.
  27. ^ An overview of the security features Archived 12 October 2013 at the Wayback Machine, Swiss National Bank (page visited on 11 October 2013).
  28. ^ Guinness World Records (2008 ed.). Hit Entertainment. p. 126. ISBN 978-1-904994-18-3.
  29. ^ (in French) Michel Beuret, "Les mystères de la fausse monnaie", Allez savoir !, number 50, June 2011.

Bibliography

  • Michel de Rivaz, The Swiss banknote: 1907–1997, Genoud, 1997 (ISBN 2-88100-080-0).
  • Albert Meier, Monnaies – Billets de Banque. Suisse – Liechtenstein 1798–1995, Hünibach, 1996.