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5 Pounds Northern Bank - Millennium
| Issuer | Northern Bank Limited |
|---|---|
| Year | 1999-2000 |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Shape | Rectangular |
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| Obverse description | Predominantly blue polymer note with fine guilloche underprint across the entire field. The Northern Bank logo and "ESTABLISHED 1824" inscription appear at upper centre, flanked by a hexagonal optically variable device at upper left and a star-burst window element at upper right. A large multicolour concentric-ring vignette occupies the lower left, with a matching partial vignette at lower right. The denomination "£5" appears in colour-shifting ink at upper right, and the promise to pay legend is printed in the centre field above the bold "FIVE POUNDS" denomination text; date "8 OCTOBER 1999" and the Chief Executive's signature appear at lower centre. |
|---|---|
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| Reverse description | The reverse carries a line-art vignette of a space shuttle launching from atop a red grid-line globe centred on the note, evoking the turn-of-the-millennium theme. Electronic circuit-board and scientific instrument motifs — including a barcode, capacitor symbols, and a clock face — are arranged across the upper right field, while star-burst transparent window elements appear at upper left and lower centre. The Northern Bank logo with "ESTABLISHED 1824" is printed in the centre, and multicolour concentric-ring vignettes repeat at lower left and right corners. The printer's initials "CBN" appear at lower right. |
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| Comments |
Northern Bank's Millennium fiver holds a firm place in polymer history as the first polymer banknote ever issued by a commercial bank rather than a central bank — a distinction that tends to get lost in broader discussions of the technology's rollout. The Canadian Bank Note Company produced it in Ottawa, but the note was always a Northern Bank commercial decision, not a Bank of England or central authority directive. That independence made it unusual for the British Isles.
The transparent window and OVD were still relatively novel security features in late 1999 for everyday retail circulation, and public reaction in Northern Ireland was notably skeptical. Many were simply saved rather than spent.