History

Start of Timeline  

1910
Treasury Building Australian Notes Act vested control of the note issue to the Commonwealth Treasury of Australia.

1911
Old Kings Warehouse Commonwealth Bank established and was later made responsible for the issue of banknotes.

1912
T.S.Harrison set up the note printing operation in the Old Kings warehouse in Melbourne. First Australian circulating banknote series ranged in value from 10 shillings to 1,000 pounds.

1924
Fitzroy Building Note Printing and Note Issuing branches established in Fitzroy, Victoria.

1945
The Commonwealth Bank Act formally established the Commonwealth Bank as a sole legal issuer of Australian currency notes.

1960
The Reserve Bank Act passed the note issue function to the Reserve Bank of Australia.

According to Section 34:

  1. Subject to this Act, the Bank may:
    • issue Australian notes.
  2. Australian notes shall be printed by, or under the authority of, the Bank.

1913 - 1966
Commonwealth Banknote series issued.

1966
Decimal series currency introduced:

$1, $2, $10 & $20 - 1966
$5 - 1967
$50 - 1973
$100 - 1984

1981
The Note Printing Branch moved from Fitzroy, Victoria to Craigieburn, Victoria.

1984
$1 note (specimen) $1 note replaced by coin.

1988
$1 note (specimen) $2 suffered the same fate.

1988
$10 note Bicentenary First polymer banknote marking Australia's Bicentenary and incorporating a DOVD feature was issued. This banknote was the result of a R&D program (CNRD) undertaken between the RBA & CSIRO to find a more secure banknote to counter modern counterfeiting techniques first experienced on a large scale with the 1966 $10 paper note release.

1992
$5 note $5 banknote was issued on polymer.

1993
$10 note $10 banknote was issued on polymer.

1994
$20 note $20 banknote was issued on polymer.

1995
$50 note $50 banknote was issued on polymer.

1996
$100 note $100 banknote was issued on polymer. The issue of this note marked Australia as the first country to issue a full series of circulating polymer banknotes.

2001
$5 Federation Special $5 Federation Special Issue circulating polymer banknote note was issued marking the centenary of birth of our Nation.

2003
A passport production facility was established on site in Craigieburn. After years of development by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) and NPA, on 27 November 2003 the new Australian M series passport was launched.

2004
Australian chip booklet Manufacture of the first prototype of the Australian chip booklet commences at Craigieburn.
End of Timeline  

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