SANTIAGO, May 11, 2011 (Xinhua News Agency) -- Chile' s Central Bank on Wednesday launched a new 1,000 peso note, the last of five new notes the bank has gradually introduced during the last year, the central bank director said at a press conference.
The note marks the change of banknotes in Chile for the first time in 30 years and was made to reflect the modernization the Chilean society has gone through in the last three decades, said Central Bank President Jose de Gregorio.
"This is a new family of bank notes which from the art and design reflects a pattern that identify the Chilean culture and give it a modern image," said de Gregorio.
"It has been of great pride for the bank to be able to realize this change of bank notes," he said, adding that the five new bank notes have been made in accordance with technology that is compatible to security standards required by international financial standards.
A total of 34 million 1000 peso notes on Wednesday entered into circulation while the existing 140 million notes currently in circulation will gradually be withdrawn.
The change of bank note has cost the central bank 1.5 million U.S. dollars and a total of 600 million new notes have been printed.