The Central Bank of Seychelles will launch a new family of bank notes and coins in December to commemorate 40 years of Seychelles’ Independence. The theme will be “Seychelles’ Unique Biodiversity — the backbone of our economy.” The new series was four years in the making and will include different sized 500-rupee, 100-rupee, 50-rupee and 25-rupee notes, as well as seven new coins in 1- to 10-rupee denominations. The 10-rupee coin is a ringed-bimetallic issue replacing the current note of the same denomination. 

The design of the new series incorporates 35 examples of the Seychelles’ flora and fauna including a variety of birds, fish and reptiles, and the carnivorous pitcher plant. 

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To ensure a smooth transition and popular acceptance, certain design elements have been retained, such as the general color schemes and some design features. 

The new bank notes have new and enhanced features offering better protection against counterfeiting. The needs of the visually impaired are facilitated by a tactile raised print rendering of small coco-de-mer nuts on all the notes — two coco-de-mer on the 25-rupee note, three on the 50-rupee note, four on the 100-rupee note, and five on the 500-rupee note. 

The use of Creole, English, and French text celebrates the nation’s trilingual heritage.

Five million notes of each denomination have been printed and will be released based on commercial demand. The old currency will remain legal tender until the bank demonetizes it.