A new design for Bangladeshi currency notes will be introduced within the next six months. Instead of featuring the portrait of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, they will showcase religious landmarks, Bangladeshi heritage, and 'July Revolution Graffiti'.
The Bangladesh Bank and the government have already given their final approval for this initiative.
Officials from the central bank and the Ministry of Finance have confirmed that the designs of 20, 100, 500, and 1,000 taka notes will be changed.
Sheikh Mujibur Rahman’s image will be excluded from these denominations initially, with plans to gradually remove his portrait from all currency notes.
On September 29, the Finance Ministry's Budget Division instructed the Bangladesh Bank to submit detailed design proposals for the new notes.
The Currency and Design Advisory Committee of the central bank, chaired by the Deputy Governor-1 of Bangladesh Bank, will make the primary recommendations for printing the new notes. This committee also includes prominent artists.
When asked, Husne Ara Shikha, spokesperson and Executive Director of Bangladesh Bank, stated that significant progress has been made. "We expect the new notes to be available in the market within the next six months," she said.
An official from the government treasury said the only remaining step is the tender process. Once completed, the new notes will be printed and distributed promptly. At present, the printing of currency has been halted and will resume as needed.
How New Notes Are Printed
The Security Printing Corporation (Bangladesh) Limited, known as the Takshal, is responsible for printing Bangladeshi currency. Although established in 1976, the Takshal began printing banknotes in June 1988, starting with 1-taka notes, followed by 10-taka notes in November that year.
Each design is government-approved, often involving tenders to select artists for creating the designs.
Once finalized, materials like paper, ink, and plates are sourced through international tenders. Printing begins only after the plates are imported.
Bangladesh Bank does not print notes continuously. Typically, a note remains in circulation for 4–5 years before being reprinted. Lower-denomination notes tend to wear out faster due to frequent use.
Every year, a specific quantity of currency is produced and stored in the Bangladesh Bank vault. These notes are introduced into circulation as needed, officially becoming part of the money supply only when released.
Currently, Bangladesh has 10 denominations of paper notes in circulation: 1, 2, 5, 10, 20, 50, 100, 500, and 1,000 taka, all featuring Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. Some notes have his portrait on both sides, and his image also appears on coins.
Recent Printing Costs
According to Bangladesh Bank’s annual report, the cost of printing new notes reached 38,400 crore taka in the 2022-23 fiscal year, up from 37,400 crore taka in the previous year and 34,000 crore taka in 2020-21.
The last major design change was in 2020 with the launch of the 200-taka note, featuring enhanced portraits of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. Since then, the same two distinct portraits have been used on all new notes.