WASHINGTON — The folks who print America’s money have designed a high-tech makeover of the $100 bill. It’s part of an effort to stay ahead of counterfeiters as technology becomes more sophisticated and more dollars flow overseas, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke says.
The makeover, unveiled Wednesday, may leave people wondering whether there’s magic involved.
Benjamin Franklin is still on the C-note. But he has been joined by a disappearing Liberty Bell in an inkwell and a bright-blue security ribbon composed of thousands of tiny lenses that magnify objects in mysterious ways. Move the bill, and the objects move in a different direction.
The new currency goes into circulation Feb. 10, giving the government time to educate the public in the United States and around the world about the changes.
“We estimate that as many as two-thirds of all $100 notes circulate outside the United States,” said Bernanke, who stressed that the 6.5 billion $100 bills now in circulation will remain legal tender. The Associated Press
