A new £20 note featuring the 18th century moral philosopher and economist Adam Smith has been issued today.
The new-style £20 notes will circulate alongside the older notes featuring the composer Edward Elgar which will be progressively withdrawn from circulation.
Speaking about the new security features of the £20 note, Andrew Bailey, chief cashier at the Bank of England, said he hoped the brighter note with its larger silver hologram would deter counterfeiting.
He added: "It's very important that we produce notes that the public can recognise."
Although counterfeiting is not a widespread problem the UK, Mr Bailey noted that as the £20 note is the most common one - with around 1.2 billion of the Adam Smith notes expected to be produced - it is the most attractive to counterfeiters.
Described by the Bank of England as "one of the fathers of modern economics", Adam Smith will become the first Scotsman to be commemorated on an English banknote. His celebrated work, the Wealth of Nations, is widely seen as the first writings on modern economics and a defence of the free market.
"The insights that he developed in his work have stood the test of time they really lie at the heart of our understanding of the economy," added Mr Bailey.
Digg 
Delicious 
Reddit 
StumbleUpon 
Google 
Technorati 
Netvouz