ASTANA – The National Bank of Kazakhstan revealed the new design of 10,000 tenge (US$22) banknotes that will enter circulation starting from June 28, reported the National Bank’s press service.
Photo credit: NBK
The banknotes will enter mass circulation in September, as additional time is required for delivery to all regions of the country and adaptation of equipment such as automated teller machines (ATMs), terminals and other cash equipment.
Style of the banknote
The new banknote’s design is based on elements of the Saka style, a tribute to the Saka tribes that inhabited Kazakhstan in the first millennium BC. The Saka style, regarded as the origin of traditional Kazakh ornamentation, embodies the nation’s heritage. This style incorporates elements from the Golden Man’s headdress, discovered in the Issyk kurgan and dating back to the fifth to fourth centuries B.C.
The front of the banknote will feature a snow leopard on a mountaintop, symbolizing fearlessness, power and beauty. It will also feature the “Tree of Life” branch with a soaring bird, symbolizing the connection between nature and belief. The front also features the DNA spiral, and an infinity symbol stylized as an ornament, denoting man’s connection with nature.
The reverse side of the background also features a leopard. Behind the main image is a circular Kazakh ornament, which encompasses the idea of a shield, an ancient symbol of the four sides of the world, as well as the solar sign in the center—a symbol of creative energy and life.
The artefact on the back of the banknote is the head of a leopard with griffins in its mouth found in Berel burial mounds in the East Kazakhstan Region dating eighth-seventh centuries B.C.
This is the second banknote from the new Saka-style series. Earlier this year, the National Bank redesigned the 5,000 tenge banknote.
Parallel circulation and replacement period
All existing banknotes of the 2012 sample will still be accepted within two years period while the new banknotes will gradually replace them.
During this period of parallel circulation, the population does not need to exchange old-style banknotes for new banknotes at second-tier banks or branches of the National Bank. The period of parallel circulation of old and new banknotes will be effective from June 28, 2024, until June 28, 2026. All old-style banknotes will be gradually withdrawn from circulation within two years.
After completion of the period of parallel circulation, all banks and Kazpost (Kazakhstan’s postal service) will exchange old-style banknotes for new-style banknotes within the next three years, until June 28, 2029. The National Bank branches will accept the old banknotes indefinitely.
