Imagine Currency is a charitable initiative led by the think tank CashEssentials and by the International Banknote Designers Association (IBDA) and supported by the entire cash community to use the medium of design to visualise a better future. The designs are auctioned on the online auction site Catawiki, which will run from 14-23 September.

Corona Bonds, by Philippe Assalit

‘Cash is not only a functional payment tool or a store of value. It represents a lot more to a diverse range of people. The cultural symbolism of cash in society is as diverse and profound as its range of uses. Banknotes and cash in general facilitate life. The highly evocative and stunning imagery present on a banknote landscape can be associated with our emotions, our successes, our failures, our history, our today and our future. It is simply an intrinsic and deeply engrained part of our humanity’ commented Guillaume Lepecq, Chairman of CashEssentials.

Imagine Currency is a platform for these stories to be told. Stories of the precious moments, big and small, that cash and only cash, brings to individuals and societies but to which a simple metric cannot be applied. Imagine Currency represents a series of visual narratives from around the globe by people who have never met but are connected by a common desire to tell their stories of the past, present and future via the medium of banknotes.

A CHARITABLE INITIATIVE

Imagine Currency is a charitable initiative involving the auction of 40 concept banknote designs from a wide spectrum of people, reflecting an immense cultural landscape. They include submissions from artists and photographers, as well as a number of banknote concepts created through HUMANIA, launched in December 2020 by the IBDA and CashEssentials to support human recovery and development post-Covid-19, in which designers were invited to capture a moment from the pandemic and depict it in banknotes or coins.

Solidarity and Vigilance by Rédouane Chouardi

One exclusive, large format print (500mm x 702mm) of each banknote design will be offered for sale during the Imagine Currency auction. The design will be printed on authentic banknote polymer substrate and accompanied by a high-security certificate of authenticity.

100% of the proceeds from the auction will be donated to Go Give One campaign run by the WHO Foundation to purchase COVID-19 vaccines for the most vulnerable and under-vaccinated countries. As of June 2022 only 58 of WHO’s 194 Member States had reached a 70% vaccination coverage. In low-income countries, just 37% of healthcare workers had received a complete course of primary vaccination.

The Messengers by Catherine Routier

‘Imagine Currency will clearly demonstrate that while there are no metrics to measure something that resists measurement, there is probably a good reason… the value banknotes bring to each and every one of us is simply immeasurable and unquantifiable yet clear and present’ Guillaume said.

By participating in the Imagine Currency charity auction, we invite you to explore and discover the true value banknotes bring to society and become an owner of an exclusive piece of banknote art that represents something special for you.

The auction closes on September 23 at 8:00 pm CET.

CLICK HERE TO PARTICIPATE

SPECIAL THANKS

CashEssentials and the IBDA would like to acknowledge the contributions and support made by the following organisations to the Imagine Currency Initiative:

Designs

CCL Secure (Carlos Almenar)

SICPA (Sebastien Freuler)

Koenig & Bauer Banknote Solutions (Michelle Bonzon-Vuilleumier, Jerome Badan, Phillipe Mermoud, Giovanni Galuffo)

Chouardi Redouane

Supporting Organisations

International Security Ligue