Category: Currency

The Apex of Innovation with QUANTUM stripe™: Banknote Security Delivered at Scale

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Author: Haleigh Winters

Banknote security features backed by nano optic technology are considered to be one of the most advanced, secure OVD’s (Optically Variable Devices) in the currency industry today. QUANTUM stripe™ from Authentix’ patented nano optic platform is now fully proven for volume manufacturing and available to the currency market, marking a major inflection point for the industry. With the manufacturing process validated and capacity secured, we have moved from innovation to full market impact. This sets a new benchmark for the currency industry and ensures Central Bank customers can access our cutting-edge technology at significant scale.

Why do banknote security features need superior technology?

 

Counterfeit Resilience

Modern banknotes are in a constant race with counterfeiters. As technology becomes more accessible and more sophisticated, the tools available to criminals improve too. That’s why central banks must keep innovating – they look for technologies that are extremely counterfeit resilient. QUANTUM stripe’s nano-scale origination, proprietary algorithms, specialized manufacturing and materials are not and never have been commercially available. ​Hence, it is extremely difficult to reproduce, setting a very high barrier to entry. Stronger security features help maintain trust in a nation’s currency, especially for global trade.

 

Simplicity

Public verification needs to stay simple. Nano Optic security features are easy to authenticate due to their smooth, always on, intuitive animated effects. Combining micro and nanostructures augments the optical effects of both, controlling the light at all scales: macro, micro and nano. This creates unambiguous and consistent plasmonic color without inks or dyes. QUANTUM stripe’s 3D stereo depth, multi color effects, and fluid movement significantly enhances public verification by giving end users something intuitive and unmistakable to experience. Authentication becomes inherent, easier, and faster, while providing an ultimate barrier to illicit replication. As counterfeiters learn to mimic legacy features, new ones must replace them to secure public confidence in cash.


Durability and lifespan improvements

Innovation in new materials and substrates make banknotes last longer and harder to counterfeit. QUANTUM stripe’s encapsulated structures enable overprinting, post print varnish and superior resistance to dirt. Extensive trialing and testing have been carried out on various substrates and application equipment giving confidence for real world application and adoption. In summary, our work with central banks, substrate producers and banknote printers has shown that QUANTUM security features can be seamlessly introduced to enhance a new banknote series or create an upgrade path in existing banknotes. The stripe’s robustness has been validated by third party testers, along with our own stringent durability testing at Authentix and Kurz.

Why QUANTUM stripe a low-risk implementation option

Choosing QUANTUM stripe for your next denomination or banknote series is low risk and high reward – although a completely new technology platform with superior counterfeit resilience, the innovation is underpinned by integration and industrialization.

Following successful technical validation for scaled manufacturing of the QUANTUM stripe nano optic feature, our focus turns to meeting the growing global demand and supporting issuing authorities stay ahead of the counterfeiter. Authentix breakthrough nano optic innovation is backed by world-class production capacity, ensuring reliable, high-volume supply for banknote customers.

From a design perspective, we offer one of the most customizable and only true multi color animated features, that has been engineered to apply more like a traditional feature i.e. no machinery adaptations, no special processing and within existing print or substrate manufacturers capabilities. To make it easier for Central Banks, these features can be applied on all substrates with unmodified industry equipment. It is truly fully customisable for ultimate design integration.

​While the origination technology behind QUANTUM security features is extremely cutting edge, the technology has been engineered for integration into existing workflows, and to be applied more in line with traditional features in the market.  The origination puts all of the technology on a single layer, so there is no need for laminating and alignment as is required for micro-optics. With an ultra-thin form factor of less than 10 microns, application to any substrate, paper, polymer, hybrids, is straight forward and secure.

On every metric you can measure, QUANTUM stripe is best in class- at the forefront of future innovation. Contact Authentix today to request a design workshop, get a sneak peek of our upcoming animated housenote, or learn more about incorporating Nano Optics into your next banknote series.

Authentix Introduces Animation for QUANTUM stripe™ at BIN Webinar

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Author: Haleigh Winters

Earlier this month, Mark Spencer, SVP of Product & Design at Authentix, presented his perspective on the next evolution of QUANTUM stripe™  at the BIN Banknote Technology webinar series. The webinar explored how animated security is advancing banknote protection. This new capability enables smooth, dynamic motion within a secure, nanoscale feature, introducing effects such as depth, pulsing, rotation, image switching, and controlled appearance and disappearance. National symbols can be animated with precision, creating clear, intuitive cues for authentication. By combining nano-optic precision with animation, QUANTUM stripe expands the visual language of banknote security – allowing central banks to integrate movement, meaning, and trust directly into overt features. Watch the webinar now. 

Bringing National Symbols to Life with Nano-Optic Banknote Security

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Author: Haleigh Winters

Banknote security features have long walked the line between science and art. As banknote designers and security technologists, we aim not just to protect, but to captivate by creating features that communicate trust, deter counterfeiting, and elevate the user experience. With the latest evolution of QUANTUM stripe™ from the Authentix Nano Optics platform, we are proud to unveil a powerful new capability that deepens that blend with full animation.

Animating Security: The Next Evolution of QUANTUM stripe™

QUANTUM stripe now enables full frame by frame animation, bringing smooth, dynamic movement to overt security features. Bringing national symbols to life with nano optics is possible, within a secure, nano-scale overt feature with numerous frames per sequence, unlocking a new visual vocabulary for authentication. This innovation expands the creative possibilities for banknote design and security, introducing effects never before seen in this context – multicolored national symbols with sequence movement, depth, pulsing, image transitions, smooth disappearance and reappearance, and rotational imagery. Elements of national pride can now come alive – think of flames flickering, cogs turning in a watch, an hourglass slowly filling. A sun can rise and set, locks can open, stars can swivel, currency symbols can smoothly switch to denominations all on a banknote!

These animations aren’t just decorative; they serve a core authentication purpose. By blending art and authentication, this breakthrough allows banknote designers to integrate visual storytelling and temporal effects – like pulsing, switching, and rotation – into secure features, enhancing both user interaction and authentication.

The Artistry of Animation in Banknote Design

In the world of overt security features, animation has largely remained elusive – confined to low-frame optical tricks or coarse lenticular effects with limited flexibility. Our ability to create numerous frame animations opens the door to detailed motion effects at an entirely new scale. The result is smooth, fluid movement that mirrors the richness of traditional animation, but rendered with nanoscale precision.

Why Smooth Animation is Important for Human Senses:

Mimics natural movements and enhances visual perception: By giving end users something intuitive and unmistakable to experience, authentication
becomes a inherent, easier, and faster, while providing an ultimate barrier to illicit replication.

There is an evolutionary basis for this heightened sensitivity to natural movement: Humans have long relied on natural movement to detect subtle environmental adjustments.  Early humans even depended on movement recognition to survive.

Capitalizes on the brain’s natural tendency to react to realistic movement: Animations appeal to viewers’ visual and verbal memory processes,
increasing the probability of recalling important information like being able to intuitively recognize genuine banknotes.


Fluid movement captivates us on an innate level: Unique animated effects elicit different kinds of emotions. Neuroscience and psychology research suggests that our brains link certain motion patterns with particular emotions. Fast-paced pulsing animations can make the public excited, slower rotation movement can make viewers calm or happy. Smooth and flowing animations like growing, shrinking and image switching can promote feelings of ease and trust.

Figure 1: Example of multi frame animation


Figure 2: Traditional low frame animation

Designing with Flow for Optimal Banknote Security

Each animated effect is designed to create an intuitive, memorable interaction. A user can tilt the note and watch symbols shift in fluid harmony, reinforcing the ideas of movement, trust, and precision. Dynamic features open up additional layers of functionality. We can create effects that appear only when tilted in a specific direction, or that reveal different content depending on viewing angle – enabling more complex authentication cues for the end user. These animations aren’t just decorative; they serve a core authentication purpose. By blending art and authentication, this breakthrough allows banknote designers to integrate visual storytelling and temporal effects – like pulsing, switching, and rotation – into secure features, enhancing both user interaction and authentication.

Figure 3: Example of animation effects

Nano Optic Animation Raises the Bar for Counterfeit Deterrence

The strength of certain security features are based on, among other things, the difficulty of replicating them. Animation adds a new dimension to greatly increasing the challenge of illicit replication. The technical complexity required to produce animated features, especially with smooth, direction-sensitive transitions makes duplication significantly more difficult. Where traditional overt elements can be mimicked with static approximations or even digital print tricks, dynamic sequences demand exactitude not just in shape and color, but in frame order, consistency of movement, and directional responsiveness.

Figure 4: Dynamic design becomes a new language for authentication

Attempting to counterfeit a feature with multiple frame animation introduces an entirely new and greater challenge…Every frame must align. Every transition must be seamless. Every optical pathway must support the intended viewing experience. This is no trivial feat. And critically, the visual payoff – when executed correctly – is unmistakable. This next chapter cements the Authentix QUANTUM stripe technology position at the pinnacle of innovation in securing banknotes in the industry. The very nature of Nano Optics allows for greater customization, where animations are tailored to central banks, individual issuers, drawing on cultural and national themes to create deeper resonance. Plasmonic colors and effects breathe life into national symbols. Combined with Authentix proven scalability and manufacturing readiness, QUANTUM stripe is not just a technology breakthrough, but a practical, deployable, and elegant solution for central banks worldwide.

This leap into animation represents more than a technological milestone. It marks a shift in how we think about design: recognizing that movement carries meaning, that artistry can amplify security, and that the best features don’t just protect…they inspire. Where every shift in light and angle tells a story, and where the timeless principles of trust, creativity, and innovation continue to lead us forward.

Contact Authentix today to request a design workshop, get a sneak peek of our upcoming animated housenote, or learn more about incorporating Nano Optics into your next banknote series.

View in PDF format here.

Alan Newman Featured in Banknote Industry News Interview

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Author: Haleigh Winters

As a trusted partner to leading central banks, Authentix is an experienced banknote security solution provider in today’s complex and rapidly changing currency markets. In a recent interview with Banknote Industry News, Alan Newman, Chief Product Officer at Authentix, offers an inside look at the evolution of QUANTUM stripe™, the company’s next‑generation nano‑optic security feature for banknotes.

Newman outlines the rigorous journey from R&D to high‑volume readiness, spanning nanostructure engineering, durability testing, manufacturing validation, and compatibility across both paper and polymer substrates. The goal: deliver the most advanced Level 1 public security feature the industry has seen. Read Now.

Banknote Technology Report 11 Features Authentix

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Author: Haleigh Winters

Authentix was recently featured in the 2025 Banknote Technology Report 11th Edition published by Banknote Industry News which provides valuable insights from leading banknote suppliers regarding technological advancements, innovations and trends in banknote production. In the report, Authentix introduces real animation in a security feature. QUANTUM stripe™ now enables full frame by frame animation, bringing smooth, dynamic movement to overt security features. With greater customization, banknote animations can be tailored to individual issuers, drawing on cultural and national themes to create even deeper resonance.

Read the Authentix article here.

To download a copy of the full report, visit: https://www.banknote-industry-news.com/btr

Scaling Nano-Optic Security: Industrialization and the Evolution of PICO secure™

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Author: Haleigh Winters

This paper explores new developments in Authentix’ sub-wavelength nano-optic platform and lessons learned in industrializing this technology for mass manufacturing both novel and cutting-edge security features for government identity documents. These new PICO secure™ OVDs are highly resistant to counterfeiting and represent an optical security achievement. It brings together overt authentication, personalization, and polycarbonate durability in a way that has never been achieved – paving the way for a new generation of secure, user-friendly identity documents.

Read Now

HOT News Highlights Authentix in August Edition

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Author: Haleigh Winters

We’re proud to be featured in the August edition of Holography & Optical Technology (HOT) News, a leading publication spotlighting innovation in optical security and authentication.

In this issue, our Chief Product Officer Alan Newman shares how nano-optic technology is reshaping the future of authentication, from advanced overt features to next-generation covert solutions that elevate brand and document protection.

Read the publication here.

LumaChrome® Colour-shifting Film

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Author: Marushka Dias

This paper introduces the Authentix LumaChrome® optical thin film, based on the optical interference characteristics of deposited thin films for high production manufacturing. LumaChrome has been used to authenticate banknotes for over 20 years, and this colour shifting film changes from one colour to another distinct colour when tilting the film yielding an intuitive and easy to use solution which is extremely difficult to replicate.

Availability in multiple formats from a security patch for government ID cards to full thread insertion into banknotes, LumaChrome is a highly versatile and powerful tool for securing documents and products. With the ability to create several standard colour-shifts over a wide range of saturation levels, Authentix can create a lasting security feature that experiences virtually no degradation over the lifetime of the substrate.

Read Now

Authentix Powers Fastex’s Groundbreaking Crypto Banknote with Next Generation Security

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Author: Marushka Dias

Fastex Launches FTN-Backed Collectible Currency Notes

Secure and ultra-fast trading platform Fastex recently announced the release of a series of collectible currency notes, each backed 1:1 by FTN token, the platform’s native cryptocurrency.  Unveiled on July 9th at the Harmony Meetup 7 in Yerevan, Armenia, the annual event that unites top minds from Web3 and iGaming, these currency notes feature advanced, banknote-grade anti-counterfeit features provided by Authentix. The notes include serial numbers, intaglio ink, optically variable ink, and metallic security foil along with elegant designs based on the planets in the solar system. Each note is redeemable at any time for its full value in FTN on the Fastex exchange. This collaboration marks a significant milestone in merging traditional banknote security with blockchain innovation, offering users a tangible and secure way to engage with digital assets.

Design and Security Features

The collectible notes, are the result of extensive research and development. Designed and printed by Royal Joh. Enschede, an Authentix Company, each note features banknote-grade anti-counterfeit technologies in use by central banks around the world, including serial numbers, intaglio and optically variable inks, metallic security foils, and a polymer substrate. These features ensure the notes have the highest standards of authenticity and durability.

As a global expert in authentication technologies and over 25 years of experience, Authentix ensures the integrity of each note as the third-party authentication provider for FTN. The currency notes are fully asset-backed and redeemable for their full value in FTN on the Fastex exchange. Users can verify authenticity through NFTs linked to each note, which are burned upon redemption, adding another layer of digital security.  With this project, Fastex becomes the first Web3 crypto exchange to offer a secure, physical banknote paired with the digital cryptocurrency token registered on its exchange platform.

Authentix: Ensuring Integrity and Trust

Authentix’s involvement in this project highlights the growing importance of authentication and verification in the Web3 space. The Fastex banknote initiative sets a new benchmark for how physical and digital assets can coexist securely.

Ready to learn more about us? Click here.

Watch the full interview with Joe Galloso, Authentix’s International Sales Director, on the Fastex Crypto Banknote designed and printed by Royal Joh. Enschede and authenticated by Authentix: https://x.com/BTCTN/status/1947657889482440973

GemVision™ Camera System – Industry’s First CDI2 Fitness Solution

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Author: Kathryn Olivier


As the cash cycle continues to evolve, Central Banks are challenged to lower the costs associated with currency management while fighting new counterfeiting threats and improving the quality of circulating banknotes. The Authentix GemVision™ Camera System is the industry’s first CDI2 fitness solution. GemVision is powered by the Vision Inspector software solution developed by Boulder Imaging. The Vision Inspector solution allows for an unprecedented number of fitness related measurements to be made in a real time processing environment while operating on commercially available off the shelf Windows based servers. The high-speed (>40 banknotes per second), high-resolution (50-micron gray scale) imaging sensors and Image Evaluation Unit are designed in support of the new Common Detector Interface (CDI2) specification agreed to by the United States Federal Reserve Bank and the European Central Bank. This new standard allows for easy integration of 3rd party sensors into banknote processing systems.

This greatly helps cash visibility as it allows a Central Bank to select a fitness sensor with capabilities aligned to the fitness criteria that they value, whether it is accurate soiling determination, ink wear assessment on polymer notes or fitness determination of Level 1 features. Furthermore, the improved data access and direct control of note sorting provides Central Banks with the tools they need to increase cash cycle visibility. This CDI2 common specification also enables sensor fusion whereby results from sensors of multiple suppliers are combined to produce the best overall authentication and fitness decision for each processed banknote, bringing together ideas and solutions from various industry participants. GemVision provides unprecedented accuracy and speed for feature detection and fitness assessment of banknotes.

GemVision detection capabilities include:

• Detection of denomination, series and orientation of notes

• Multi-angle illumination and full color analysis for human-like fitness evaluation

• Industry-leading accuracy and repeatability for banknote evaluation results

• CDI2 compliant image/data streaming for use by other sensors and storage of combined data for research, analysis and system enhancements over time

• High accuracy (>99.99%) determination of serial numbers and smaller printed characters

GemVision Benefits for Central Banks:

• GemVision improves cash visibility by providing unprecedented access to banknote data and images acquired during high-speed banknote processing. This is significant to Federal Reserve Financial Services as it helps reduce the number of notes taken out of circulation prematurely.

• It increases the efficiency of banknote processing and extends the life of notes in circulation by making more intelligent sorting decisions regarding banknote authenticity and fitness.

• More intelligent banknote processing simultaneously reduces the cost of cash as well as its carbon footprint.

• The CDI2 standard also makes it easier for Central Banks to optimize processing environments by selecting their detectors from multiple suppliers. The new standard is further projected to be adopted industrywide by most Central Banks over the next several years and will provide far greater control for the processing of banknotes and make it easier to select best in breed detection platforms in the future.

• It enhances fitness sorting and lowers the cost to manage cash by decreasing the rate of pre-mature shredding events. In addition, it provides central banks with improved access to the sorting decisions and the data behind these decisions.

Enhanced note fitness assessment is driven by the sensor fusion and directly controlled by central banks regarding note sorting decisions. This enables central banks to assess the quality, wear and authenticity of banknotes with greater accuracy and precision. It empowers central banks to make more informed decisions regarding the circulation and withdrawal of currency, optimizing cash management strategies, maintaining the integrity of the currency supply and reducing the cost of currency management by lowering the rate of erroneous shredding of otherwise fit banknotes.

The most reliable High-Speed Fitness Sensors for Cash Processing

The Common Detector Interface 2 standard was jointly created by the European Central Bank and the U.S. Federal Reserve. The U.S. Federal Reserve is the first central bank to specify the standard as part of its upgrading of the cash processing environment. This is part of an unprecedented overhaul of the cash processing operations.

A key part of the standard is the Camera Sensor and Fitness Solution. Part of the requirements focus on the note presentation and specify a “belt free view” which enable a higher level of fitness evaluation as compared to transportation approaches where the note is partially obscured by transportation belts. More accurate fitness determination leads to better visibility regarding the quality of notes in circulation. The highly accurate reading of serial numbers and series year information supports note fitness monitoring programs where the change in fitness of a note is evaluated over time. The improved access to sensor data and the sharing of data between systems will lead to more insightful analysis regarding note quality determination.

Authentix and Boulder Imaging collaborated with the specification groups within the ECB and FRB by providing feedback on the standards. This was important as key learnings regarding a new standard are typically revealed the first time systems are built following the new specification.

Authentix and Boulder Imaging also chose to go beyond the base requirements of the standard and to implement note image capturing techniques and image processing algorithms that make it possible to assess the fitness of overt features. This is particularly important regarding cash visibility as these are the features that the public most relies upon to confirm authenticity and fitness. Unless the quality of these overt features is being inspected, a central bank is not receiving a complete view of the quality aspects of a note that may impact how the note is used by the public and retail sectors.

Capabilities that extend beyond the CDI2 requirements for the GemVision Camera Sensor and fitness solution include:

• High resolution (100 μm) full color images are captured at note speeds exceeding 10 meters per second (>40 notes/sec) that allow a high accuracy (less than 1 misread in 10,000 notes) of small text items such as the series year and intaglio plate letters and numbers. High-resolution images are also used to confirm the IR transparency of inks, the presence of windowed threads and resolve serial numbers and other text features.

• Balanced illumination is created by a pair of LED illuminators each at a precise angle to the plane perpendicular to the note motion. By capturing full color reflectance images using both balanced and asymmetric illumination, GemVision confirms the presence and activity of overt features. This creative imaging approach also determines if the quality of the overt feature has degraded over time and factor this information into the note fitness decision.

• Another unique innovation is detection of crumples and creasing on banknotes. The presence of shadows on GemVision images provides valuable information which can be used to determine the fitness of the note or the fitness of tactile features provided for the visually impaired.

• Novel scattering and shadow mask transmission images – GemVision relies upon a creative solution of using two types of scattering images to assess the fitness and authenticity of a banknote. A scattering transmission image is captured by the “back side” sensor housing while the balanced reflection image is captured on the “front side.” As the illumination is arriving on the note at an angle, the transmission image is created by light that is scattered forward into the collection optics. From these images GemVision confirms the presence of embedded security threads, paper “bridges” on windowed threads.

Using next-generation technology for the most reliable banknote security

• GemVision takes advantage of sensor fusion capabilities through the establishment of an Image Data Bus (IDB) to share images and a Data Machine Bus (DMB) to share denomination and orientation results made by the Camera System and its Image Evaluation Unit combined. This allows downstream sensors which require information such as the note denomination, orientation or series to receive this information from the DMB without having to generate an independent result. An aggregator module also supports sensor fusion allowing central banks to pool and weight multiple results from a collection of sensors to determine sorting decisions.

• CDI2 standard has not only disaggregated the sensor from the sorting machine but also disaggregated what was previously viewed as “the fitness sensor” into a Camera System and a separate Image Evaluation Unit. This means that entities with novel approaches to inspect a banknote or the analysis of the CDI2 images can choose where to focus using solutions like GemVision. Instead of providing a complete Camera System and IEU solution, they could target one or the other, either providing a new Camera System hardware design or connecting a device to the data buses to process the images that are shared with all sensors. This additional utility could replace an IEU or augment its results with additional image processing variables, potentially bolstering fitness results, authentication results and help Central Banks with complete cash visibility.

Conclusion

With nearly 20 years of high-speed sensor development experience, Authentix is a trusted partner for central banks and understands the complexity of the cash industry. Similarly, Boulder Imaging has been helping industry partners solve challenging inspection problems for over a decade. The top capabilities of each organization helped to make GemVision and its unprecedented fitness measurement capabilities a commercial reality. The industry will benefit greatly as CDI2 fitness solutions like GemVision become the industry standard and consequently introduce new and innovative ideas for collaboration among multiple stakeholders in the cash cycle.

Please contact us to learn more and schedule a meeting with one of our currency experts.

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