THREAT OF MASSIVE COUNTERFEITING MAY BE REASON FOR NEW U.S. CURRENCY 

Concerns over the possibility of a massive counterfeiting operation may the inspiration behind recent changes in U.S. Currency. The New Yorker Magazine has reported that changes may be prompted by a massive, Syrian backed counterfeiting operation, which is believed to be based in Syria or Lebanon and is protected by the Syrian military.

The magazine reported that the fake $100 bill dubbed the Supernote - has become so common in Russia that German banks will no longer accept the notes from Russia. U.S. officials fear that up to 20 percent of all $100 bills circulating outside the United States may be counterfeit. About two-thirds of the $390 billion of U.S. currency is in circulation outside of the United States at any given time.

The New Yorker article asserted that the Supernote appears so real that a top Secret Service technical analyst as well as the Federal Reserve's highly sophisticated computer scanners accepted it as genuine. The Supernote has the unique translucent polymer thread embedded in the paper, a change that required years of research and development by Crane & Co., the firm that supplies currency paper to the Treasury. 
 

U.S. RELEASES NEW CURRENCY TO RUN CONCURRENTLY WITH
OLD CURRENCY.
 
The United States Federal Reserve Bank has begun the release of the new $1 00 bills. Items intended to reduce threats of counterfeiting include:

Currency will maintain it's distinctly American look.

Same bills sizes and same colors of ink (black on front, green on back)

Same cotton/linen paper.

Other areas of modification on the bills include:

Security threads will continue to be vertical but will appear red under
ultraviolet light.

Each denomination will have a unique location for the security thread
based on the denomination.

Inscribed thread runs vertically in all notes except $1 bill. Held up to
the light, the thread reads the same as the denomination ie:
"USA TWENTY" or "USA 50". 

Word "United States of America" around portrait on bill appears as a
solid line unless magnified. Check with a magnifying glass.

Red/blue fibers imbedded in paper. Paper produced by one company
(Crane Company of Mass.). Counterfeiters cannot get the paper.

Compare seal on reverse side. All points should be the same size, clear
and distinct, not cut-off.

Portrait should show major detail and appear almost three dimensional.
"Stare out at you".

Ink is raised. On a new bill the ink will feel like small ridges.

New bills will be redesigned starting with the $100 bill and slowly working down through the $20. Changes on the new bills will appears as:

Larger off-center portrait of Franklin. Off-center portrait is designed to protect
the ink from wearing off through constant folding and unfolding the bill in half.

Color shift inks. When looking straight at the new $100 bill the ink in the lower
right corner will appear green. When the bill is tilted, the ink on the $100 logo
changes to black. The ink has a holographic type appearance.

Watermark portrait. The new bills have a water mark portrait of the off-center
portrait that is visible when held up to the light. On $100 bills Ben Franklin appears
in the portrait and the watermark. The portrait will always be denomination specific
matching up with both watermark and off-center picture.

Concentric fine-line printing. Nearly impossible to duplicate, the circle of printing appears as a solid line unless reviewed by magnification. When counterfeited, the circle of printing around the portrait rapidly decays and is easily distinguishable.