By Brendan M. Case
Dallas Morning News
Nov. 1, 2002
MEXICO CITY - Mexicans are now paying with plastic, at least when they use the
nation's new 20-peso bills.
The next generation of 20s recently debuted, delighting some shoppers, bemusing
others and making Mexico a leader in currency innovation.
The change? The powder blue bills, worth $2 apiece, are made of a polymer. The notes are thin enough to fold into a wallet and durable enough to wash with a sponge.
"They're great," said Lilia Miranda Huitron, 22, an account executive at a Mexico City bank. "You can do whatever you want to them, and they don't get mistreated too badly."
Mexico became the first country in North America to experiment with plastic cash when it introduced the polymer bills last month. Proponents say such bills, an Australian innovation, will set the standard for 21st century currency.
The bills cost more to manufacture than paper bills, but they're designed to last longer. In Mexico, where notes are regularly subjected to cruel and unusual punishment, authorities hope to get their money's worth.
"This bill, which is the smallest denomination, changes hands frequently," said Jaime Pacreu, the director of note issue at the Bank of Mexico, the central bank. "That causes a faster deterioration than in other denominations."
The U.S. Treasury has conducted printing trials on polymer substrate, officials say they have no plans to replace traditional greenbacks, which are made of cotton and linen.
As the home of the almighty dollar, the world's favorite currency, the United States prints as many as 9 billion bills per year, said Claudia Dickens, a spokeswoman at the Treasury's Bureau of Engraving and Printing.
European Union officials also chose paper for the euro, the continent's new currency.
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