The new series of peso bills shifts design focus from historical figures to the environment
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The Philippine eagle has a new home, and it’s in your wallet. Along with several other endangered species, the eagle was the first to land on the country’s new peso bills. The first complete polymer banknote series was launched by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) at Malacañang on Dec. 19, 2024.
lotsa slots casino gamesThe shift from portraits to endangered wildlife indicates a change in the design philosophy of local currency. While previous banknotes featured historical figures, the new polymer series turns its focus entirely to the country’s biodiversity and natural landmarks, design elements that have always been part of our currency but in coins.
This move has naturally been controversial. In mid-2021, the portraits of World War II heroes José Abad Santos, Vicente Lim, and Josefa Llanes Escoda on the P1,000 bill were removed and replaced by the Philippine eagle. The change was initially questioned for historical revisionism as well as criticized for early factual errors.
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In the new P500 bills, the faces of the late President Corazon Aquino and her husband, former Sen. Benigno Aquino, Jr., were removed. Portraits of former presidents Manuel Roxas and Sergio Osmeña were also removed from the P100 and P50 bills, respectively.
Still, production continued till the release of the first series to the public in December last year. BSP Governor Eli Remolona Jr. stated that “the polymer series raises awareness of the country’s threatened species, serves as a symbol of Filipino identity, and fosters national pride.”
Ambeth Ocampo, a former chair of the National Historical Commission of the Philippines from 2002 to 2011, recalls his suggestion back in 2010 to feature cultural figures like painter Fernando Amorsolo, sculptor Guillermo Tolentino, writer Amado Hernandez, and historian Teodoro Agoncillo.
He also suggested featuring National Scientists, but that the studies led to a series featuring presidents instead. Ocampo makes the point, “If banknotes are the calling card of the nation, what do these animals say of us as a people? Those against polymer and what is printed on them must wait 10 years for the next change. Hopefully, the flora and fauna series will be replaced with heroes of the arts and sciences. Anything is better than presidents or politicians.”
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This artistic direction of the new peso bills seems to align with a global trend in more contemporary currency design, where banknotes like the Hong Kong dollar and euro do not feature people.
Philippine Daily Inquirer’s Raul Palabrica analyzes the implications of the currency: “The change in the P500 bill got some political color because the Aquinos were once the political adversaries of the father of the incumbent president… The opposition to the displacement of the faces of some Filipinos in the paper notes somehow implies that they would cease to be honored, or worse, forgotten… Putting their photos in the bill notes is only one of many ways that the country has shown its appreciation and gratitude for their sacrifices to the Filipino people.”
The new approach seems to veer toward avoiding historical controversies or choices that may be perceived as helping politicize certain people and families—and instead celebrating other elements of national identity, like the environment, which has the potential to unite rather than divide.
On the new designs
The new peso bills feature a range of meticulously chosen animals and natural places.
The blue P1,000 note pairs the Philippine eagle with the South Sea pearl, while the P500 note features the Visayan spotted deer and blue-naped parrot. On the P100 note is Palawan’s peacock-pheasant with the butanding or whale shark on the other side. Rounding out the collection is the P50 note, with the Visayan leopard cat and maliputo, a prized Indigenous migratory fish in Taal Lake.
But the new notes did retain certain components that made their paper predecessors memorable. Elements of the Tubbataha Reef still grace the P1,000 note, while the Puerto Princesa Subterranean River is layered on the P500 bill. Mayon Volcano and Taal Lake maintain their places on the P100 and P50 notes, respectively, as well.
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From paper to polymer
According to President Marcos Jr., the new peso bills are about practicality. “Unlike paper bills, which wear out after about a year or a year and a half, polymer banknotes can last up to seven and a half years, five times longer,” says Marcos. “And that means that we no longer need to replace them as often, saving money, cutting down on waste, and making a meaningful contribution to protecting the environment.”
Polymer is also resistant to bacteria and counterfeiting. Although Ocampo notes that the banknotes, when left in heat, can cause shrinkage.
The new P50 bill features the Visayan leopard cat and Vidal’s lanutan, alongside Taal Lake, native maliputo fish, and designs of Batangas embroidery. Photo from BSPWhile the new polymer series covers P1,000, P500, P100, and P50 denominations, the P20 already transitioned to a solid coin format, a practical choice given how the most frequently exchanged bills wear out, typically becoming unusable after just two to three months of heavy circulation.
While there was initial concern about the new peso bills’ polymer material and its effect on the abaca industry, according to the BSP, the new banknotes will have minimal negative effects. For example, the initial issuance of 500 million pieces of P1,000 polymer banknotes made up less than a percent of the 2023 abaca exports and farming jobs.
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The new peso bill notes have started appearing in the Greater Manila Area since Dec. 23, 2024, before rolling out to the rest of the country. Initially, you’ll need to get the new peso bills over the counter at banks, though the P500 and P100 notes will eventually be available through ATMs.
For those concerned about telling them apart, the new notes match their paper counterparts in size and color. This is unlike the coins, which are often at random sizes and in similar color shades that are hard to distinguish. But the bills also feature tactile dots along the top edge to help elderly users and those with vision impairments to identify the new peso bills easily.
ChocoVron Vice President Marissa Lourdes Yala told the Philippine News Agency on the sidelines of the US-PH 2024 Trade Mission Conference at The Manila Hotel on Friday, October 18, that the P500 million (US$8.75 million) expansion plan of the company will triple the capacity of its production facility in San Pedro, Laguna.
While the Marcos administration has been exerting efforts to attract more green power developments to the market, the sector may be dealing with some hitches as the projects are now “being processed for termination” due to the companies’ failure to meet committed timelines, the agency noted Sunday.
So next time you break a large bill, you might just find yourself holding a pocket-sized piece of Philippine biodiversity, with money that aims to be more durable, more secure, less politicized, and more environmentally friendly than its paper predecessor.
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