Currency design in the United States and abroad: counterfeit deterrence and visual accessibility. From: Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis Review | Date: September 1, 2007| Author: Anderson, Richard G.; Williams, Marcela M. | COPYRIGHT 2007 Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan.  All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group.Copyright information

Despite the increasing use of electronic payments, currency retains an important role in the payment system of every country. In this article, the authors compare and contrast trade-offs among currency design features, including those primarily intended to deter counterfeiting and those to improve usability by the visually impaired. The authors conclude that periodic changes in the design of currency are an important aspect of counterfeit deterrence and that currency designers worl...