The Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ) is the nation’s central bank. Over recent decades, the RBNZ has placed significant emphasis on innovation to enhance its contribution to the New Zealand economy – taking on board lessons from the past to shape the future. A recent example of this is the new Series 7 banknotes. They are brighter, bolder, clearer, and incorporate world-first design, printing and security features.
While this example is very visible, many of RBNZ’s innovations are less so. Enhancements in machinery, processes or software can be hard to comprehend for most people. What is more meaningful and easier to understand is the impact they create through their measurable improvements. For example, the life of a bank note has improved from 12 months to 84 months through a variety of innovations made over the last 20 years. These types of improvements were communicated in the annual report through a series of infographics. The old figures were compiled from old New Zealand banknotes taken from RBNZ’s archives dating back to our earliest currency.
