Poland is Europe’s 9th-largest country, covering about 312,696 kilometers. Sitting at the geographic crossroads of northwestern Europe woodlands, the flats of the Eurasian borders, and the waterways that lead to the Atlantic Ocean. The country lies in Central Europe, margined by Lithuania, Russia, Germany, Belarus, Ukraine, Slovakia, and the Czech Republic. The Polish zloty, which is Poland’s legal tender, is the most traded monetary unit in Central and Eastern Europe. The currency name is the masculine form of the Polish term for “golden”. It was introduced on February 28, 1919, to replace the Polish markka.
Source: AS
On March 17, 1929, the Polish Bank of Aid was formed as a national bank serving Polish people overseas. Its first issues were introduced in 1960 and were known as “bon towarowy” which means “coupon for merchandise”. They were foreign exchange certificates introduced when the country was short of foreign exchange holdings.
Source: Banknote World Educational
On January 10, 1945, the Polish banknotes issued by the Emission Bank of Poland were replaced by paper bills issued by the Narodowy Bank Polski (National Bank of Poland). These paper bills were at first printed by Goznak in Moscow. These notes had an inscription error that was corrected when its production was moved to Poland. In 1945, the Narodowy Bank Polski was established and started operating as a state-owned entity administered by the minister of treasury.
Modern Polish Banknotes
Polish Zloty banknotes issued between 1974 and 1992 feature significant personalities in the history of Poland. These paper bills also depict the country’s crest. They are all sized 138 x 63 mm and were printed by Polska Wytwornia Papierow Wartosciowych. Although these banknotes were withdrawn from circulation on December 31, 1996, they were still exchangeable at the National Bank of Poland until they were demonetized on December 31, 2010.
Source: Banknote World
In 1993, the bank introduced a set of Polish notes similar to the previous ones but with security threads and new watermark designs. Another family of notes featuring the rulers of Poland was introduced in 1994. Similar banknotes designed by Andrzej were released between 2012 and 2018 bearing improved security elements including SPARK features and Omron rings.