Banknotes redesigned for 1st time in 20 years

The new design for 10,000 yen banknote Eiichi Shibusawa (1840-1931): Born in Fukaya, Saitama Prefecture, Shibusawa was a distinguished businessman who laid the foundation for the modern Japanese economy, and was called the "father of Japanese capitalism." He founded the First National Bank, a predecessor of Mizuho Bank. (Credit: The Yomiuri Shimbun)

The government announced Tuesday that new 10,000, yen 5,000 yen and 1,000 yen bills will be issued around the first half of fiscal 2024.

The design of the new 10,000 yen banknote will feature prominent businessman Eiichi Shibusawa, known as the "father of Japanese capitalism." The new 5,000 yen bill will bear the image of Umeko Tsuda, founder of Tsuda College, now Tsuda University, and bacteriologist Shibasaburo Kitasato will be on the 1,000 yen note. A redesign of the banknotes was last carried out in 2004. The government aims to strengthen anticounterfeiting measures utilizing new technologies.

The design of the 500 yen coin will also be changed around the first half of fiscal 2021. The coin, which will be bi-colored, has a center newly incorporating white copper, in addition to the use of the material currently used.

The new design for 5,000 yen banknote Umeko Tsuda (1864-1929): A native of Tokyo, Tsuda was a pioneer of higher education for women. In 1871, she visited the United States as a member of the Iwakura Mission at the age of 6, becoming the first Japanese woman to study abroad. (Credit: The Yomiuri Shimbun)

"They were committed to tackling various challenges, which remain even today, such as nurturing new industries, empowering women and developing science and technology," Finance Minister Taro Aso said at a press conference Tuesday, speaking about the three figures selected to appear on the bills. "They deserve to be on the new Japanese banknotes in the new era."

Shibusawa replaces Yukichi Fukuzawa on the front of the 10,000 yen note, while the design on the reverse will feature Tokyo Station's Marunouchi Building. The portrait for the 5,000 yen bill will be changed from Ichiyo Higuchi to Tsuda, with wisterias depicted on the reverse. On the 1,000 yen bill, Kitasato replaces Hideyo Noguchi and the reverse will feature ukiyoe master Katsushika Hokusai's work, "Kanagawa oki nami ura" (Under the Wave off Kanagawa), which is included in his "Fugaku Sanjurokkei" (36 Views of Mt. Fuji).

A larger font size will be used for the numerals denoting the value of the bills. The shapes of identifying marks on the notes that can be distinguished by touch will also be changed to make them more user-friendly for visually impaired people.

The new design for 1,000 yen banknote Shibasaburo Kitasato (1853-1931): Born in Oguni, Kumamoto Prefecture, bacteriologist Kitasato was called the "father of modern medicine in Japan." He was known for his pioneering work in serotherapy for tetanus and discovery of pest bacillus. His name was up for the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1901. (Credit: The Yomiuri Shimbun)

Among measures to prevent counterfeiting, high-definition watermark patterns will be newly adopted. Cutting-edge technologies will be used to create 3-D holograms that will make images on the bills appear to move when viewed from different angles.

Banknote redesigns have occurred about once every 20 years. To prepare for production of the new bills and companies' responses to the changes -- such as updating vending machines -- the announcement has been made about five years before the bills enter circulation. The 2,000 yen note, of which circulation is limited, will remain unchanged.

Most Japanese banknotes issued after World War II carried the images of Shotoku Taishi and politicians in the Meiji era (1868-1912), but the trend has shifted to select more cultural figures since a design revamp of bills that went into circulation in 1984.

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