Straight up, your new '˜vertical' bank notes

The UK's first '˜vertical' bank notes are to enter circulation in Northern Ireland next year, it has been revealed.
Les Matheson (centre) CEO, Personal Banking at RBS launches Ulster Bank's newly designed bank notes at the bank's Andersonstown Road branch with Collete O'Hare, branch manager and Terry Robb, head of personal banking at Ulster Bank in Northern Ireland.Les Matheson (centre) CEO, Personal Banking at RBS launches Ulster Bank's newly designed bank notes at the bank's Andersonstown Road branch with Collete O'Hare, branch manager and Terry Robb, head of personal banking at Ulster Bank in Northern Ireland.
Les Matheson (centre) CEO, Personal Banking at RBS launches Ulster Bank's newly designed bank notes at the bank's Andersonstown Road branch with Collete O'Hare, branch manager and Terry Robb, head of personal banking at Ulster Bank in Northern Ireland.

Ulster Bank has unveiled its new polymer £5 and £10 notes, which will be printed portrait rather than the traditional landscape shape.

The new designs, which were shown off for the first time today at an event in the bank’s Andersonstown branch in west Belfast, were developed with a panel of experts and people from across the country.

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The £5 note features images of Strangford Lough and Brent Geese, while the new £10 note displays Lough Erne, Irish hare and Guelder-rose shrubs.

A king scallop from Strangford Lough also features on the notes, as does an Ulster Glade potato from Co Antrim.

Richard Donnan, Head of Ulster Bank in Northern Ireland, said the new notes contain advanced security features that will make them much harder to counterfeit.

He added: “Innovation is at the core of our bank, whether that’s through digital technologies, in our face-to-face services, or these designs”.

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Reactions to the new designs have been mixed, with one person stating on social media: “Wait til London cabbies see this.”

One unimpressed Facebook user said: “Fun trying to count these”, while another joked: “I’m gonna need a vertical wallet.”

However, one person who appeared to be a fan of the design pointed out: “Makes sense as till drawers are this shape.”

Ulster Bank stressed that all NI bank notes are legal currency across the UK, adding the bank is “currently working with vendors and retailers to ensure that machines can accept and use the notes when they are released next year”.