QR-Codes in Bank Notes
From early experiments in Sweden to broader global adoption, QR codes in bank notes have evolved as both a security feature and a gateway to dynamic digital information.
QR-code technology was invented in 1994 by Masahiro Hara. In the March 2026 issue of World Coin News, I discussed its implementation in coins, which started in 2011 with a two-coin series struck by the Royal Dutch Mint.
The insertion of a QR code in bank notes was developed a few years later. The progress achieved has been significant, with many variations currently in circulation that include a QR code. The situation contrasts with that of the coins, where QR codes have so far only been inserted in commemoratives or bullion.
The implementation of QR codes in bank notes provides an additional level of security embedded in the paper. The code also gives users access to dynamic information about the currency, the issuing institution, or the commemorative events celebrated in the design.
Apart from being the earliest country to implement QR-code technology in coins, the Netherlands was also first in proposing QR-coding in euro notes in 2007. The proposal failed due to security concerns.
In 2012, Sveriges Riksbank announced that it would produce the world’s first bank notes to feature QR codes. Swedish artist and engraver Göran Österlund won a 2011 competition to design the notes. Although the new bank notes were expected to enter circulation in 2015, the project was temporarily abandoned due to security concerns. There was a risk that scanning the codes could allow access to users’ personal information.
Some examples of this early currency are known to exist in 500-krona bank notes that incorporate QR codes on both sides. When scanned, they redirected to the Riksbank website, which contained information about the institution, its history, and the services it offered to citizens. The corresponding 500-krona notes, without the QR codes, entered circulation in 2014, and the technology has not yet been implemented in Swedish bank notes.
In 2014, the Central Bank of Nigeria issued the first functional bank note with a QR code. A nominal value of 100 naira, it commemorated the centennial of the country’s formal reunification. The QR code engraved on the reverse led users to a website about Nigeria’s history. The bank notes (151x78 mm) have been regularly issued.
A 20 zloty note (138x69 mm) was issued in 2015 by Narodowy Bank Polski to commemorate the 600th anniversary of the birth of the historian Jan Długosz. The QR code was laser-engraved on the obverse against a white background and redirects to a dedicated webpage of the Narodowy Bank Polski that provides information about the notes.
The British company Thomas de la Rue printed 5-cedi bank notes (131x68 mm) for Ghana in 2017. The notes were issued in 2017 to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the Central Bank of the African country. A QR code was engraved in the reverse that, when scanned, leads to the Bank’s webpage that contains information about the notes.
After years of hyperinflation, Zimbabwe introduced its new currency, Zimbabwe Gold (ZiG), in 2024 to replace the Zimbabwean dollar. It is backed by physical gold and reserves held in foreign currencies (mostly U.S. dollars) to guarantee stability. Nonetheless, the measure could not avoid the rapid depreciation of the new currency, and in February 2025, it retained only 5% of its original value against the American dollar.
Bank notes (155x65 mm) in denominations ranging from 1 to 200 ZiG were printed in 2024. Those with the lowest nominal values (1, 2, and 5 ZiGs) were not issued, and to date, only the 10- and 20-ZiG notes have entered circulation (since April 30, 2024). The banking authorities have decided not to put in circulation notes of higher denominations for the time being to prevent inflation. All notes incorporate a QR code in the obverse that is supposed to redirect to a webpage of the country’s Central Bank.
But it is Russia, the country that has made so far, the most extensive use of the QR technology in its domestic bank notes. Its Central Bank issued in 2015 a 100-ruble bank note to commemorate the annexation of Crimea by the Russian Federation, which was illegally seized from Ukraine in 2014.
The obverse of the note is dedicated to Crimea and features the castle Swallow’s Nest. The QR code appears embedded on the lower green stripe and redirects to a webpage of the Bank of Russia with information about the note.
The country also issued a 2018 polymer 100-ruble commemorative bank note made to celebrate the FIFA World Cup in Russia that year. The QR code redirects to a webpage of the Bank of Russia, that contains information about the note’s security features. While both types of notes were meant to circulate, the country’s ATMs do not accept the polymeric notes issued in 2018.
In 2017, 200- and 2,000-ruble bank notes featuring a QR code on the obverse were issued by Russia. The obverse of the 200-ruble notes (150x65 mm) portrays the Monument to the Sunken Ships located in Sevastopol, which belonged to Ukraine until its occupation by Russia in 2014. The design is also featured on the reverse 100-ruble commemorative note issued in 2015.
The obverse of the 2,000-ruble bank note (157x69 mm) features the Russky Bridge that connects the island with the mainland in Vladivostok. The QR codes were engraved on the respective obverses and link to a dedicated webpage of the Bank of Russia containing information on their security features. The implementation of the QR codes as well as the new colors used in both bank notes were selected through a public vote.
In March 2021, Russia announced plans to gradually update the designs of its bank notes and make them more secure. All new notes would feature a QR code. The plan was expected to be completed in 2025. In line with the former, the country launched a 100-ruble bank note (150x65 mm) in 2022, depicting, among others, the Kremlin’s Spasskaya Tower on the obverse. Interestingly, the time on the chimes is 20:22 in allusion to the first year of circulation of these notes. The QR code engraved on the obverse leads to a webpage of the Central Bank, containing information about the means of protection and the artistic elements of the bill.
Similarly, the initial designs of the new 1,000- and 5,000-ruble bank notes were unveiled in 2023. While the 5,000-ruble notes entered circulation, the release of the 1,000-ruble notes has been delayed due to the introduction of modifications in the original design. The notes were expected to enter circulation in 2025 with new bank notes of 10, 50, and 500 rubles, but the final designs are not yet known.
Through its 100%-owned company Goznak, Russia has even printed bank notes incorporating this technology for separatist regions that the country acknowledges as independent states (Abkhazia) or where it maintains military control (Transnistria). Abkhazia issued 500-apsar notes in 2018, followed by issues in denominations of 25 apsars (2023) and 50 apsars (2025), while Transnistria issued 50-ruble notes in 2025, all of which incorporate QR codes.
What’s Next?
Slowly but steadily, more countries seem to rely on the integration of QR-code technology in their bank notes. New technological developments would possibly lead to a widespread incorporation of QR codes in notes and even the universalization of other digital moneys like the cryptonotes, hybrid bank notes that bear public and private keys to access a cryptocurrency account.
Technological innovations in this field that could soon find application in bank notes include the production of QR codes made from nanoparticles, thereby creating “invisible” codes that can only be seen under IR laser light. The method even allows for hiding letters or symbols within the code, thereby providing for an additional level of security.
Special attention deserves a study carried out by Portuguese researchers in which they managed to create QR codes having a triple storage capacity of an analogous size black/white QR code. The so-called multiplexed luminescent QR code integrates three luminescent QR codes, each one containing different information, that can be read independently (i.e., when exposed to daylight, blue, or green illumination, respectively). Interestingly, the researchers have already imagined the incorporation of this technology in euro bank notes.
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