SGD · Singapore
Singapore's Portrait Series, introduced in 1999, is the current family of notes and carries a portrait of Yusof bin Ishak, the country's first President. The lower denominations, the $2, $5 and $10, are printed on polymer, while the $50 and $100 are on paper, so the checks differ between them. A distinctive Singaporean feature runs through the whole series: a see-through register that forms a lion's head symbol when the note is held to the light.
Features published by the Monetary Authority of Singapore.
On the paper notes a watermark formed within the paper shows the portrait of Yusof bin Ishak together with the denomination numeral. It is created by varying the thickness of the paper fibres, so it reads as a soft gradation of light and shade.
How to check: Hold the note up to the light. The watermark must be visible from both sides and must disappear completely when the note lies flat on a table.
Part of a lion's head symbol is printed on the front of the note and the remainder on the back. The two halves are printed in exact register so that they combine into a single complete symbol.
How to check: Hold the note against a light source and look at the lion symbol. The two printed halves should join into one clean, complete lion's head with no offset, doubling or gap. Precise front-to-back registration is very difficult to reproduce.
A security thread is embedded within the note carrying microprinted text. On the paper notes it is a windowed thread, which surfaces at intervals so that it appears as a broken silver line on the face of the note but as a continuous dark line when held to the light.
How to check: Look at the note flat and note the broken dashes, then hold it to the light, those dashes must join into one unbroken line running through the note. Use a magnifier to read the microprinted text on the thread.
The polymer $2, $5 and $10 carry a clear window formed in the polymer itself, containing the denomination and a design element.
How to check: Hold the note to the light and look through the window. It must be a genuine part of the note, with no glue line or raised edge that would betray a patched cut-out.
A pattern of raised dots in the upper right corner of the front identifies the denomination by touch for blind and partially sighted users. Each denomination has its own pattern.
How to check: Run a fingertip over the upper right corner. The dots should be firmly raised and clearly defined, not a flat printed imitation.
The portrait and much of the lettering are printed by intaglio, leaving the ink perceptibly raised above the surface.
How to check: Run a fingernail over the portrait and the denomination numerals, a genuine note gives a distinct ridged texture.
Very small text, including references to the Monetary Authority of Singapore, is printed in several places on the note.
How to check: Under a magnifier the microprint should be sharp and fully legible; on a counterfeit it degrades into a smudge or a line.
Under ultraviolet light selected elements of the note fluoresce, including the denomination, while the substrate itself remains dull.
How to check: A counter check under a UV lamp. Uniform bright fluorescence across the whole note indicates the wrong substrate.
What changes from one note to the next, once you have run the general checks above.
The $2 is purple, printed on polymer, and shows an education theme on the back.
Check the clear window formed in the polymer, the see-through lion's head register when held to the light, and the raised dots in the upper right corner.
Because it is polymer, the paper watermark check does not apply, its absence here is expected.
The $5 is green, printed on polymer, and shows a garden city theme with a tembusu tree on the back.
Check the clear polymer window, the lion's head see-through register against the light, and the raised dots in the upper right corner.
The polymer should spring back when flexed rather than holding a crease.
The $10 is red, printed on polymer, and shows a sports theme on the back.
Run the same polymer checks as the $2 and $5: the clear window, the lion's head register held to the light, the raised dots, and the feel of the substrate.
The $10 is the note most commonly dispensed by Singapore ATMs alongside the $50, so it is the one you will handle most.
The $50 is blue, printed on paper, and shows an arts theme on the back.
Because this is a paper note, the watermark check applies: hold it to the light and look for the portrait of Yusof bin Ishak with the numeral 50, visible from both sides.
Check the windowed security thread (broken dashes when flat, a continuous line against the light) and the lion's head see-through register. Feel the raised intaglio print on the portrait and the raised dots in the upper right corner.
The $100 is orange, printed on paper, and shows a youth theme on the back.
Run every paper-note check: the portrait watermark with the numeral 100 against the light, the windowed security thread joining into a continuous line, the lion's head see-through register, the raised intaglio print, and the raised dots in the upper right corner.
As the highest denomination in ordinary circulation it is the one most worth checking in full rather than relying on a single feature.
Source: Monetary Authority of Singapore, currency security features
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