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King Charles III banknotes: a sneak peek at the new £5, £10, £20 and £50 notes

Pedro Goncalves
·Finance Reporter, Yahoo Finance UK
Updated ·2-min read
The portrait of King Charles will appear twice on banknotes. Photo: Bank of England
The portrait of King Charles will appear twice on banknotes. Photo: Bank of England

Banknotes featuring King Charles III have been revealed by the Bank of England, with plans for them to enter circulation mid-2024.

The Bank of England says the King’s portrait will be the only change on existing designs of its £5, £10, £20 and £50 polymer plastic notes.

The notes will gradually replace those featuring his mother, Queen Elizabeth II, and enter circulation from the middle of 2024.
The notes will gradually replace those featuring his mother, Queen Elizabeth II. Photo: Bank of England

This means that no changes will be made to the figures featured on the obverse of the notes, which are currently Winston Churchill, Jane Austen, JMW Turner and Alan Turing in ascending order of value.

Read more: Money new year resolutions: How to plan your finances for 2023

The design of notes will also continue to follow the existing colour scheme and patterns introduced with the switch to polymer in 2017.

Bank of England’s King Charles III bank note designs. Photo: Bank of England
Bank of England’s King Charles III bank note designs. Photo: Bank of England

"I am very proud that the bank is releasing the design of our new banknotes, which will carry a portrait of King Charles III," Bank of England governor, Andrew Bailey, said.

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"This is a significant moment, as the King is only the second monarch to feature on our banknotes. People will be able to use these new notes as they start to enter circulation in 2024."

Read more: Find out where to get a coin bearing the portrait of King Charles

Existing notes will still be accepted in shops after the new notes begin to circulate.

All existing notes featuring the late Queen will continue to be legal tender. Photo: Bank of England
All existing notes featuring the late Queen will continue to be legal tender. Photo: Bank of England

The Bank of England added that following guidance from the royal household to keep the environmental and financial impact of the change to a minimum, it would only print new banknotes to replace those that are worn and when needed to increase notes in circulation.

Fifty pence coins featuring the image of King Charles III are entering circulation this month, with 4.9 million coins being distributed across 9,452 Post Office branches nationwide.

The notes will enter circulation from the middle of 2024. Photo: Bank of England
The notes will enter circulation from the middle of 2024. Photo: Bank of England

Queen Elizabeth was the first and only monarch to appear on circulating Bank of England banknotes, starting in 1960. Notes issued by Scottish and Northern Irish banks do not depict the monarch.

King Charles will become only the second monarch in British history to feature on a bank note.

Watch: First King Charles coins go into production in Wales