And finally…welcome landmark for Scottish banking industry

The first Scottish banknote signed by a woman has now entered circulation.

A new £20 note from the Clydesdale Bank comes 16 years after English notes first featured a female autograph.

The Clydesdale has launched a run of 30 million notes worth £600 million signed by Chief Operating Officer Debbie Crosbie.



The notes feature images of the historic mill house at New Lanark on one side and Robert the Bruce on the other.

Three private institutions in Scotland can issue their own notes – Clydesdale, the Royal Bank of Scotland, and Bank of Scotland – while only the Bank of England puts out the paper currency south of the border.

English notes had their first female signature in 1999 when they were signed by chief cashier Merlyn Lowther, who held the role until 2003. Current notes from the Bank of England are also signed by a woman, as Victoria Cleland took the job last year.

The new Scottish £20 notes will feature Robert the Bruce, who was king from 1306 to 1329, on one side, and a picture of the historic mill house at New Lanark on the other side.

“I’m proud to be the first woman to sign a Scottish banknote and it’s particularly meaningful to be launching it at New Lanark, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, which has been featured on Clydesdale Bank’s £20 banknote since 2009,” said Ms Crosbie.

“Throughout history, women have also played an important role in banking and there’s never been more opportunity than there is now for women to lead and drive the changing shape of banking and financial services.

The Clydesdale is currently owned by the National Australia Bank, but is set to be sold off in a stock market flotation which is currently planned to take place in February 2016.

The Glasgow-based lender is the largest issuer by volume of notes in Scotland. It introduces around £400 million of new notes every year and earlier this year reached the milestone of having more than £2bn worth of notes in circulation on a single day.

The Clydesdale also introduced the first fully polymer bank note to Great Britain earlier this year. The £5 note entered circulation in March and the move is to be replicated by the Bank of England which plans to follow with its own new £5 note next Autumn.

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