New Guinness Record for Largest Collection of Uncut Banknotes

Penticton man counting on new Guinness record

 

By Joe Fries - Penticton Western News
Published: July 20, 2013 2:00 PM

Under the scrutiny of a banker and a security professional, a Penticton man last week set out to smash his own Guinness world record for the largest collection of uncut banknotes.

Leigh Follestad is preparing to submit to Guinness the documentation necessary to confirm the new record of 212 sheets in 134 different denominations from 51 unique countries, numbers about double the current benchmarks.

He began accumulating coins as a boy, but it was an uncut sheet of US $2 bills he found in Hawaii that became the foundation for his collection.

“This is basically my baby since I was 10,” said Follestad, who owns the downtown Smart Shopper store.
The colourful collection, which includes rejects, proofs and special collectors’ editions, spans the globe, from Ecuadorian sucres to New Zealand dollars and Chinese yuan.

“Canadian money is just as good as the rest of them,” he added.

At first, Follestad found new additions through central banks, magazines and dealers, “then the Internet came along with eBay and that kind of thing and I started putting buying requests out.”

The collection, stored in a secret location, is now valued at tens of thousands of dollars.

He set the previous record in 2005 after lobbying Guinness officials to create the category. To establish the new record, he had to find two reputable community members to count the sheets of money and validate the submission.

Guinness “won’t send someone for this… but they’ll verify everything and contact these people and make sure that everything is legit,” said Follestad.

Kyle Gilbert, a CIBC business financial advisor who was one of the official counters, said the task was just a little bit outside his usual job description.

“It’s a first for me. I’ll do a lot of different things for clients, but that was definitely the first on the Guinness verification program,” said the 33-year veteran of the banking industry.

“This was quite different. Most entertaining, actually.”

Follestad expects to send off his application this week and hopes to find out by the end of the year if Guinness will accept the new record.

Qatari Collector Tries to Set World Record for Same Serial Banknotes

A Qatari currency collector wants to make it to the Guinness Book of World Records as the first man to collect banknotes from different countries with similar serial numbers.

During the launching of his exhibition at Katara Cultural Village, Hassan bin Ali al-Naimi told Gulf Times that his collections had notes with serial numbers 000001, 000002, 000003 and 111111 which he considers as rare and hard to find.

He now has more or less 10,000 banknotes collected from different countries (including the Gulf region) and 100,000 from rare currency with nominated number.  Al-Naimi disclosed that he travelled a lot, went to many banks and exchange companies to look for the banknotes he was collecting. “I also go to dealers and businessmen. I meet and tell them what I am looking for so they could help me find these rare items,” he said.
However, he admits his passion is costly, given the arduous task of searching and travelling from one place to another. “It takes a lot of time and a lot of money too,” he quipped.

The currency collector also held many exhibitions in different parts of the world: the biggest were in Brazil, London, Paris and Japan. He also organised similar events in Holland and Singapore before holding one in Doha.

“I think I am the only one doing this, a kind of collection with similar serial numbers. No one has done this before and I’d like to be the first one,” he stressed. Al-Naimi believes that many collectors focus only in getting the usual notes at the local level. He urges them to do it on a wide scale by travelling to many countries.

He started collecting when he was 16 although his parents were not into currency collection. He recounted that he used to tease and hate people who had this hobby “but later on I am one of the biggest collectors”.
“We are not a family of collectors, but now, I am a one-man show. I started it all,” he said. “I don’t know why I became interested in it”.

One possible reason he cited is because of his observation that collectors feel happy of what they do especially when they exert extra effort to achieve their goal. When they tell him: “See this number? I challenge you if you can get the same number from outside,” then he would go everywhere and look for it. “I struggle a lot to get it.”

He describes currency collecting as “unique and fantastic” hobby.

About his plans, he wants to get as many different, rare things and “fancy numbers” as possible.
About the challenges he encountered in pursuing his passion, he reiterates that currency collection is an expensive hobby.

“There are many dealers, businessmen and collectors who pay a high price to get it. So you have to have a nice amount of money to get it also,” he added.

Meanwhile, HE Sheikh Hassan bin Mohamed bin Ali al-Thani, the vice chairman of the Qatar Museums Authority, inaugurated four art exhibitions on Sunday including Naimi’s “Letters and Money” at Building No 3. On the same day, Katara has also opened the “History of Qatari Publications & Printing” and Maher Alsamarai’s ceramic exhibitions. It also featured Qatari artist Rashid Mubarak al-Muhanadi’s five paintings which were about the ideas of the Holy Qur’an, letters and Arabic poetry.

New England £10 note featuring Jane Austen

Change for a tenner: New £10 note featuring Jane Austen - the design explained

Author Jane Austen replaces Charles Darwin after Bank of England faced criticism for its decision to replace Elizabeth Fry on the £5 note with Sir Winston Churchill

 

The Jane Austen £10 note, which is expected in circulation by 2017, will feature a quote from the author’s celebrated novel, Pride and Prejudice. The line is from the character Miss Bingley, who said: “I declare after all there is no enjoyment like reading!”

The novelist’s portrait is an engraving adapted from an original sketch of Jane Austen drawn by her sister, Cassandra Austen. It was commissioned by their nephew,  James Edward Austen Leigh in 1870.
In the background is an image of Godmersham Park, home of the author’s brother, Edward Austen Knight. Austen visited the house often and it is believed to be the inspiration for a number of her novels.
Hovering above Godmersham Park is an illustration of Pride and Prejudice’s heroine, Miss Elizabeth Bennet, undertaking “The examination of all the letters which Jane had written to her” - from a drawing by Isabel Bishop.
The central design in the background is inspired by her 12-sided writing table, and writing quills, which she used at Chawton Cottage, the Hampshire home where she wrote many of her novels.

 

RBI ask banks to collect counterfeit notes and give credit to customers

The Reserve Bank guidelines on counterfeit notes to banks indicates that banks will have to streamline their system in a manner that they have to bear the risk of receiving counterfeits rather than the common man who suffers a loss by unknowingly comes into possession of such notes

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has directed banks to collect counterfeit notes from depositors, mark them appropriately and also give credit to the customer for value of notes submitted.

“Detection of counterfeit notes, at banks, should be at the back office or currency chest only,” the RBI said in a circular issued on 27 June 2013 . “Banknotes when tendered over the counters may be checked for arithmetical accuracy and other deficiencies like whether there are mutilated notes, and appropriate credit passed on to the depositor or account or value in exchange given,” it added.

The RBI has further said that banks, which detect and deposit such counterfeit currency, would be compensated to a small extent. In the circular the central bank said, “It has been decided to compensate the banks 25% of the loss incurred in respect of counterfeit notes of Rs100 and above detected by them and reported to RBI and Police authorities.” This means that banks will not be absolved of the duty to check for counterfeits, but would not be the losers when a small number of fakes get past them.

The problem of counterfeit notes has been escalating over the years. Recently, fake Indian currency, worth Rs37 lakh from a Chinese source was detected at a Delhi restaurant. In another recent case, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) has revealed clear link between Pakistan and Jammu and Kashmir-based terror outfits pooling their resources to circulate fake Indian currency and using it to fund jihadi activities in India, says a report from India Today.

According to RBI, reporting and detection of counterfeit notes has not improved on its expected lines. RBI said although 90% of the currency chests are with the public sector banks, they account for reporting of a mere 10% of counterfeit notes, while private sector banks with less than 10% of currency chests are reporting 90% of such cases.

The central bank also warned that it would penalize banks that do not report counterfeit notes in its branch or currency chest. Banks would be penalized if found holding counterfeit notes in its branch or currency chest without reporting it to RBI or Police, during an inspection by the RBI. “It will be construed as willful involvement of the bank concerned in circulating counterfeit notes, and appropriate penalty strict regulatory measures against the bank including stringent disciplinary action will be imposed by RBI,” the circular said.

Here are the RBI’s guidelines for detection of counterfeit notes to banks…

1)     The process of detection of counterfeit notes should be carried out at back office or currency chest only. Banks can check arithmetical accuracy and other deficiencies like mutilated notes at counters and passed on appropriate credit to the depositor/account or value in exchange given.

2)      Thereafter the notes should be passed over to the back office or currency chest, as the case may be, for detailed verification and authentication through machines.

3)      The notes categorized as suspect during machine processing should be subjected to manual verification for checking their authenticity.

4)     The notes identified as counterfeit should be kept separately with proper impounding stamp in the prescribed format. Details of each impounded note should be recorded under authentication in a separate register.

5)     There will not be any requirement to issue acknowledgement to the tenderer. 

6)     In the cases of detection of up to four pieces of counterfeit notes, in a single transaction, consolidated monthly statement should be sent to the Nodal Police Station through the Nodal Officer of the bank. In case of detection of five or more pieces, FIR in the prescribed format should be lodged.

7)     Banks should monitor the patterns or trends of such detection and suspicious trends or patterns should be brought to the notice of RBI or Police authorities immediately. 

8)     The reporting procedure to the Regional Offices of RBI in the prescribed format will remain unchanged.

It also observed that despite the measures and after rationalizing the procedure of filing first information reports (FIRs), the detection and subsequent reporting of counterfeit notes by banks continue to be inadequate. This has serious repercussions in that the Reserve Bank is not in a position to assess the number of counterfeit notes in circulation and its ramifications for the economy.

In past we saw many cases of counterfeiting of currencies, but in India it’s not as big which affects the economy as a whole. Involvement of Pakistan ISI and Counterfeit Currency boosted from Bangladesh borders may spread many Counterfeit Currency across the country but RBI also take initiatives to protect it, RBI launched website to explain detection of fake currency. As Prevention is always better than cure to prevent yourself be aware and alert! Still if you stuck with few counterfeit notes, make sure that you deposit it in your bank!