Yahoo Finance King Charles III notes enter circulation
Banknotes featuring King Charles III's portrait are being issued in the UK from this Wednesday. But it may take some time before they become common in our wallets.
The king’s image will appear on the new £5, £10, £20 and £50 notes issued by the Bank of England. Existing notes that carry a portrait of Queen Elizabeth II will continue to circulate.
The new notes will only be printed to replace those that are worn, and to meet any overall increase in demand. There are more than 4.6 billion Bank of England notes in circulation, worth about £82bn.
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"This approach is in line with guidance from the Royal Household, to minimise the environmental and financial impact of this change. This means the public will begin to see the new King Charles III notes very gradually," the Bank of England said.
For those who can't wait, the new-look currency is available at selected Post Office branches.
The chosen Post Offices will initially have £5, £10 and £20 denominations of the new banknotes. A limit of £300 per customer will apply.
Karen Stonham, branch manager at the Portsmouth Post Office, which is also among the initial branches to stock the new notes, said: “Our local customers come into our branch every day to withdraw or deposit cash for their daily needs, so we were excited to be one of the first branches to have the new banknotes available.”
Krishna Thakeria, branch manager at the Broadway Post Office in central London, which is also stocking the new banknotes, said: “The new-look notes hold a special significance for us at Broadway Post Office, given our proximity to Buckingham Palace and the historic Cabinet War Rooms.”
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Thousands of Post Offices will receive the new-look currency over the coming days and weeks.
The Bank of England counter at Threadneedle Street in central London will also be issuing new notes featuring the King from 5 to 11 June and the same £300 limit per customer applies.
Bank of England governor Andrew Bailey said: "We're very pleased to be issuing the new King Charles banknotes.
"This is a historic moment, as it's the first time we've changed the sovereign on our notes."
Although the Bank of England started to produce banknotes in the 17th century, Charles’s mother, Queen Elizabeth II, was the first British sovereign to be given the honour of appearing on a £1 paper note in 1960.
Here are the locations and postcodes for the Post Office branches where the notes will be available first, with a gradual rollout to others in the coming weeks:
Piccadilly Plaza (Manchester), M2 1BB
Sunderland City, SR1 1RR
Portsmouth, PO1 1AB
Birmingham, B2 4AA
The City of London, EC2M 5TE
Moorgate, EC2M 5TE
Broadway, SW1H 0AX
Great Massingham, PE31 6HP
Tetbury, GL8 8DB
Minchinhampton, GL6 9BN
Windsor, SL4 1AA
Houndsditch, E1 7BS
Woodstock, OX20 1SP
Poundbury, DT1 3AZ
Watch: King Charles banknotes enter circulation in UK
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