...Northern Ireland, Ulster Bank Limited - £20 And ₤50 Both Dated 2021 Polymer Note

Tuaisceart Éireann

(Northern Ireland)

Ulster Bank Limited, (Est.1836)
Currency : Pound Sterling (GBP)

 

On 01.08.2022, I posted the Ulster Bank ₤50 polymer note issued with the date of 01.03.2021. This ₤50 note was made available to the public on 15.06.2022. In late December 2022, it was reported that the bank has released a new ₤20 was also released and the note is printed with the date of 02.12.2021. Here I have added this ₤20 to my post.

I am a bit surprised to see two notes of the same denomination printed with the same year date. The previous ₤20 issued was dated 01.03.2021 and bears the signature of Katie Murray.

 

The 50 pounds polymer banknote was issued on 15.06.2022. The bank had traditionally issued banknotes of 50 and 100 pounds, and it is not surprising that this new 50 pounds is issued. Whether we will get to see a new ₤100 in the future, time will tell.

 

As expected, the design for this new ₤50 series is completely new. Like the previous polymer banknotes first released in 2018, the front and the back are in a vertical format. This note is issued to honour Northern Ireland born, astrophysicist Dame Jocelyn Bell Burnell.

 

The announcement for this ₤50 note was made on 08.03.2022, coinciding with the International Women’s Day and the note was released to the public on 15.06.2022. It appears that only two prefixes have been sighted so far, AA and AB prefixes.

 

Alison Rose is currently the CEO of Natwest Group plc, which also owns The Royal Bank of Scotland. For this, her signature also appears on the current banknotes of The Royal Bank of Scotland. There are not many banknotes that have been issued by different issuing authorities with the same signature. The other person that had the same opportunity that I can think of was Ross Maxwell McEwan, who was also then the CEO of the Natwest group before he resigned in 2019. Ross Maxwell McEwan went on and joined the National Bank of Australia as the CEO and he retired in April 2024.

Twenty Pounds

Signature - Dame Alison Marie Rose-Slade* (tenure - 01.11.2019 to 26.07.2023)

Substrate - Polymer (De La Rue)

Date: Belfast, 2 December 2021

Dimensions: 74mm x 139.5mm

 

Front - On the front it features the Hawthorne flower and a transparent outline of Lough Neagh. On top of the note, it also features three Northern Ireland eels. As Ulster Bank is owned by the NatWest Group, the Group log, the Daisy Wheel is also printed on the top right where the transparent window is located.

It should be noted that the Daisy Wheel logo was first used in the 1971 series of banknotes issued by The Royal Bank of Scotland. The Royal Bank of Scotland acquired National Westminster Bank along with its subsidiaries (including Ulster Bank) in 2000 and the Daisy Wheel logo for the group was not printed on any of the Ulster Bank's banknotes until in 2006 when the bank issued the George Best ₤5 commemorative series.

 

This note also incorporates Derry~Londonderry’s Halloween celebrations into the security features and if viewed under a UV light, one can see the skeletons and Leisler’s bat, which is the largest bat you can find in the whole of Ireland. Here I have posted this note with the prefix of BP. I have been informed that the first prefix for this series is BP.

 

(Note"- She resigned from the NatWest Group as CEO after it was reported that one of the subsidiary banks, Coutts & Co closed off an account of a UK politician without the approval of the account holder. She took full responsibility for the bank's action, even though she played no part in the action taken by Coutts & Co. She has since been replaced as CEO by Paul Thwaite).

Back - The theme for this new £20 Ulster Bank polymer banknote is ‘Living in Nature’ and focuses on Northern Ireland as a ‘dwelling place’. It features street entertainers and their appreciative audience as shown on the back of the note. In addition to these, it also features tiles, brickwork and patterns inspired by Northern Ireland’s ubiquitous red-brick tenement buildings. Other elements of the note are drawn from the ornate decoration found on and in famous public buildings, corporate architecture and domestic homes in Derry, Belfast and other cities in Northern Ireland.

 

 

 

Fifty Pounds

 

Signature - Dame Alison Marie Rose-Slade (tenure - 01.11.2019 to 26.07.2023)

Substrate - Polymer (De La Rue)

Date: Belfast, 1 March 2021

Dimensions: 146mm x 77mm

 

Front - On the front, the main feature is the gorse flower found in Northern Ireland. The horse's thorny spines make it a haven for many wildlife. On the top (front and back) is the image of a pine marten, a cryptic wood butterfly on the bottom. On top of the note is Lough Foyle, situated north of Northern Ireland, sharing a border with the Republic of Ireland. The area surrounding Lough Foyle is famous for flora and fauna in general.

 

Back - Astrophysicist Dame Jocelyn Bell Burnell. In 1967, she was credited for the discovery of radio pulsars. The discovery eventually earned the Nobel prize in Physics in 1974', but she was not the one of the prize's recipients. The award went to her supervisor, Antony Hewish instead. Dame Jocelyn Bell Burnell was born in 1943, and at the time of her discovery, she was only 24 years old as a research student. The design depicts Dame Jocelyn Bell Burnell conducting one of her experiences. On the background of the note, it also portrays "Millies" working at the loom, as a homage to the unsung heroes of Northern Ireland's great linen industry. Also printed on the background are images of Northern Ireland's ship building and aviation industries (a drawing of part of a 'flying boat' or fixed-winged seaplane).

 

...Northern Ireland Ulster Bank - 20 Pounds Polymer Dated 2021

 Tuaisceart Éireann

(Northern Ireland)

Ulster Bank Limited
  Currency : Pound Sterling (GBP)

 

This is the second print of the £20 polymer, first released on 14.10.2020. The first issue was dated 22.02.2019 and was supposed to be released on 20.07.2020, together with the two other commercial banks, namely the Bank of Ireland and Danske Bank. The delay was due to the error in printing the legal clause on the note and as such a new version has to be re printed.

The initial legal clause printed on the first note reads as follows ;–

"Ulster Bank Limited

promise to pay the bearer on demand

 Twenty Pounds Sterling

at Head Office Belfast, for Ulster Bank Limited

22 February 2019"

 

This reprint has a new legal clause and it reads as follows: -

 

"National Westminster Bank Plc 

trading as Ulster Bank

promises to pay the bearer on demand

Twenty Pounds sterling

at Belfast

1 March 2021”

 

Apart from the new legal clause, the designs are the same with the same signature but with the new date of 01.03.2021.

 

I have been told that the first prefix for this series is AU.

 

Signature - Katie Murray (Chief Financial Officer, since 01.01.2019)

Dimensions - 73mm x 140mm

 

Dated 2021, Hawthorne flower, a transparent outline of Lough Neagh and eels

Street musical performers

 

...Northern Ireland, Ulster Bank - £20 Dated 2019 (Issued 2020) Polymer

Tuaisceart Éireann

(Northern Ireland)

Ulster Bank Limited
  Currency : Pound Sterling (GBP)

 

This is the Ulster Bank £20 polymer note released on 14.10.2020. This note was supposed to be issued on 20.07.2020 together with the £20 issued by the Bank of Ireland and Danske Bank. The initial report was that the delay in releasing this note was due to the error in printing the legal clause on the note and as such a new version has to be re printed.

The initial legal clause printed on the note read as follows ;–

"Ulster Bank Limited

promise to pay the bearer on demand

 Twenty Pounds Sterling

at Head Office Belfast, for Ulster Bank Limited

22 February 2019" 

Ulster Bank Limited has been owned by the Royal Bank of Scotland Group since 2000, which also owns the National Westminster Bank plc, the Royal Bank of Scotland and Isle of Man Bank. The holding company renamed the group name to NatWest Group on 14.02.2020. By then the new £20 would have already been printed with the old legal clause. And for this reason, the bank decided to update the legal clause to reflect the changed to the legal name to:-

"National Westminster Bank Plc trading as Ulster Bank, promises to pay the bearer on demand Twenty Pounds sterling at Belfast, 1 March 2021”.

Initially, it was believed that the bank would destroy those printed with the old obligation clause and reprint them that reflect the new name change.

The initial announcement for this new £20 was that the illustrations of this note initially provided by the bank and De La Rue and featured in United Kingdom media are not the same as the one showing on the website of the Association of Commercial Banknote Issuers (ACBI). ACBI is the organization responsible for assisting the Bank of England in coordinating currency issues in Scotland and Northern Ireland. The scans provided by Ulster bank showed the date of “22 February 2019” with an obligation reading “Ulster Bank Limited promise to pay the bearer on demand Twenty Pounds Sterling at Head Office Belfast For Ulster Bank Limited”. However, the image on the ACBI has shown the date of “1 March 2021” and also has a different legal obligation clause and reads as – “National Westminster Bank Plc, trading as Ulster Bank, promises to pay the bearer on demand Twenty Pounds Sterling at Belfast.”

 

Now we all know that there were two versions printed for this £20 polymer new note. As we all know, the version with the date of "22 February 2019'' was issued on 14.10.2020, which I have uploaded the images here below. The other version printed with the date of "1 March 2021" with the new legal clause is also a legal tender note but has not been released to the public until recently, which I will uploaded here later when I get the note. It appears that the first prefix for this second print is prefix 'AV'. All new banknotes to be issued by the Ulster Bank in the future will have the new legal obligation printed on the note showing the new legal name.

 

The two versions exist due to the change in name of Ulster Bank's parent company on 14.02.2020.

The theme for this new £20 Ulster Bank polymer banknote is ‘Living in Nature’ and focuses on Northern Ireland as a ‘dwelling place’. It features street entertainers and their appreciative audience as shown on the back of the note. In addition to these, it also features tiles, brickwork and patterns inspired by Northern Ireland’s ubiquitous red-brick tenement buildings. Other elements of the note are drawn from the ornate decoration found on and in famous public buildings, corporate architecture and domestic homes in Derry, Belfast and other cities in Northern Ireland.

On the front it features the Hawthorne flower and a transparent outline of Lough Neagh. On top of the note, it also features three Northern Ireland eels.

 

This note also incorporates Derry~Londonderry’s Halloween celebrations into the security features and if viewed under a UV light, one can see the skeletons and Leisler’s bat, which is the largest bat you can find in the whole of Ireland.

Banknotes issued by Northern Ireland are also legal tender in England, Wales and Scotland. There are no replacement notes printed for this series.

Signature - Katie Murray (Chief Financial Officer, since 01.01.2019)

Dimensions - 73mm x 140mm

Twenty Pounds

Dated 2019, Hawthorn flower, a transparent outline of Lough Neagh and eels

Reverse - street musical performers

...Northern Ireland Ulster Bank - £5 and £10 Polymer Notes Series Dated 2018

Northern Ireland

Ulster Bank Limited
Currency : Pound Sterling (GBP)

These two new polymer notes were released on 27/02/2019 (together with those issued by the Danske Bank and Bank of Ireland). These notes are both dated 12/04/2018. Unlike those issued by the Bank of Ireland and Danske Bank, these two notes are printed in vertical format front and back. However this is not the first time a vertical note has been issued in Northern Ireland despite it has been reported by so many. In 1999, the Northern Bank issued a £5 pounds polymer note which is also in vertical format. Only 20 years ago and people have forgotten all about this. In fact, the Northern Bank note was the first polymer note ever issued in the United Kingdom.

Also unlike those polymer notes issued by the Bank of Ireland and Danske Bank, these two notes are both dated 2018, and not 2017.

The theme for these new polymer series is "Living in Nature". This is the first time since 1966 that Ulster Bank has issued a completely new design of banknotes for general circulation (excluding the 2006 £5 George Best commemorative note) and is also the first time printed on Polymer substrates.

These new series of notes are smaller in sizes as compared to the previous paper notes series. 

Five Pounds

Dated 2018, AA Prefix

Reverse

Front - butterfly, migration of 17 Brent geese, Irish Fuchsia flower, Strangford Lough (see-through feature);
Back - migration of 21 Brent geese, featuring the importance of the sea, a small fishing trawler, family members strolling along the beach, king scallop from Strangford Lough.

Size: *66mm x 126mm (previous paper note *70mm x 137mm)

* give or take 0.5mm to 1mm

Ten Pounds

Dated 2018

Reverse

Ten Pounds

Dated 2018

Reverse

Front - Irish hare (running), Guelder (rose shrubs), butterfly, lower Lough Erne (see-through feature);
Back - Irish hare (sitting), featuring the growth of agriculture and heritage, a man with two horses ploughing field followed by another man planting seeds, colourful farmland, Ulster Grade potato which was developed in County Antrim.

*Size: 70mm x 132mm (previous paper note 76mm x 143mm)

The announcement of these two new polymer notes was made on 06.06.2018.
Signature: Ross Maxwell McEwan, Chief Executive Officer, The Royal Bank of Scotland Group. It should be noted that his signature also appears on the current The Royal Bank of Scotland's banknotes, both paper and polymer. I do not believe there are many people that have their signature appearing on two different banks simultaneously.

The first prefix of this new polymer series is AA. However it is not sure if any replacement notes have been printed as none has been sighted yet.

Footnote➠
In my opinion, the designs for these two notes are very impressive. The reverse sides on each note are just like a snapshot of a holiday trip to the beach for the £5 and like a work of art for the £10 note. Having the see-through window to illustrate both Strangford Lough and Lough Erne is also an excellent idea too. Strangford Lough is a large sea loch, whilst Lough Erne is the name of two connected lakes located in County Fermanagh (south eastern of Northern Ireland).

Many online sellers had made references to these two notes as the first vertical format notes ever issued in Northern Ireland. As far as I am concerned, this is incorrect. It was just some 20 years ago that the Northern Bank (now Trading As Danske Bank) in Northern Ireland issued a first £5 polymer circulating note dated 08.10.1999 with a MM prefix which is also in vertical format both front and back. This note was issued in 1999 to celebrate the millennium year and later issued the same note with special prefix of Y2K in a special folder dated 01.01.2000 (limited to 50,000 sets) for commemorative purposes. This was also the first polymer note issued in the United Kingdom too. I suppose some of these sellers may not have even been born then when the Northern Bank issued the £5 note or perhaps just too young to remember this or to tell the differences.