Counterfeiting banknotes is not just a crime of the past. Last year, Canadian police forces seized more than 50,000 counterfeit bills, a record — by far — for the last decade. Even though the volume of counterfeit bills is declining across the country, the battle continues between counterfeiters and law enforcement, both of whom are using the latest technology to refine their methods.
This ancient crime has probably existed as long as currency itself, indicates the Department of Justice Canada on its site. And according to him, “no economic crime is more dependent on technological development” than the manufacture of counterfeit money and counterfeit notes.
In the 19th centurye century, at the time when each bank issued its own banknotes in its image, it was more difficult for citizens to spot counterfeits as there were different denominations in circulation. Banknotes were standardized across the country in 1935 with the creation of the Bank of Canada, thus dealing a major blow to counterfeiters.
But they adapted.
The advent of digital printers and other increasingly sophisticated printing devices — also smaller in size — has something to do with it. According to the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP), offset printing is currently the preferred technique for counterfeiters, although some still use inkjet and toner.
In turn, the Bank of Canada is going to great lengths to add security features to its notes, making them more difficult to copy, including sections with raised ink and metal features that change color with light.
But the innovation that has really changed the game is the manufacturing since 2011 of polymer banknotes, a plastic that replaces traditional paper, explains to Duty Jean-Pierre Ayotte, senior analyst at the Quebec Office of the Bank of Canada. It allows the creation of innovative security features such as transparent strips, holograms and extremely detailed printing.
“It was a “major” technological advance in terms of preventing counterfeiting. The substrate itself is a security element. » Here too, counterfeiters have adapted: some have already succeeded in putting into circulation counterfeit notes imitating those made of polymer.
The bank’s overall objective is to have a BPM (counterfeit notes per million) below 30, says Mr. Ayotte. “Currently, there are 6. The idea is to stay one step ahead of counterfeiters, but by having tickets that are easy for consumers to verify. » For comparison, the BPM for the euro was 13 in 2022, according to the European Central Bank.
The peak of counterfeiting in Canada was reached in 2004, with one of the highest rates among the G10 countries, notes Mr. Ayotte. Since then, the downward trend has been notable and the BPM has decreased: it went from 16 in 2018 to 6 in 2022.
Despite this, the year 2022 was marked by a record for the last decade: Canadian police forces seized 53,630 counterfeit notes, while in previous years, as few as 4,000 had been confiscated by the police or by the Canada Border Services Agency. Since these notes were “seized,” this means that they were not used in transactions, thus having no impact on the economy.
But counterfeit notes are also detected by citizens and banks: in 2022, 15,000 counterfeit notes were “put into circulation”, mixed with the real ones. A more modest year compared to the 62,000 detected in this way in 2014.
If the $20 bill is sometimes the false denomination of choice for counterfeiters — because it is the most widely circulated note — it is the $100 bill that provides a “better return on investment.” And now that polymer notes are the most common in the country, these are the ones that counterfeiters will try to reproduce, adds Mr. Ayotte. “Generally speaking, what we see is that counterfeiters tend to target banknotes that are likely to attract less attention. »
In 2022, the $100 note was the most popular (6,000 seized by the police and 26,000 detected otherwise), followed by the $20 note, then the $50 note.
Recent cases illustrate that this crime was still present in 2023, across the country: in Drummondville, citizens reported that counterfeit notes were circulating, and in British Columbia, a laboratory was discovered. Counterfeit banknotes and high-quality printers were seized there.
In 2022, the RCMP made the largest seizure of counterfeit bank notes in the last two decades in Canada: they got their hands on a million dollars of counterfeit $100 bills, imported through a website . This is a new trend: purchasing bundles of Canadian notes on websites, particularly Chinese ones.
Counterfeiting of coins also exists, but is less popular. However, in 2022, the RCMP carried out quite a crackdown by seizing 10,970 counterfeit $2 coins, recognizable by a deformed polar bear paw.
Cash purchases have plummeted across the country during the COVID-19 pandemic — as have the number of notes put into circulation by counterfeiters. However, the most recent study shows that one in five transactions is still done in cash, underlines Mr. Ayotte, adding that counterfeiting can be expected to remain in the country.
The Bank of Canada therefore encourages citizens to familiarize themselves with the security features of banknotes, and to check them at the store and not once they get home. Nothing obliges them to accept a ticket, says Mr. Ayotte. If in doubt, refuse.
“The best security features in the world alone are not going to prevent counterfeiting” if people don’t look at them, he adds. For him, checking “is the best line of defense”.