Canada’s New $10 Bill Viola Desmond

Canada’s New $10 Bill entered circulation this week.  If you’re an old timer and still carry cash, then you may have noticed a new $10 bill in circulation this week.  No it’s not some kind of funny money, it’s Canada’s new $10 bill!

The note is made of polymer and features Canadian civil rights icon Viola Desmond.  The new $10 bill also has lots of extra security features like raised ink, colour shifting on the eagle feather, a 3-D maple leaf, metallic symbols and images etc.

Here’s an excerpt from the Bank of Canada’s press release:

“Viola Desmond was selected for the new $10 bank note by [Finance] Minister Morneau following an open call to Canadians to nominate an iconic Canadian woman for the next redesigned bank note. A successful Black Nova Scotian businesswoman, Viola Desmond defiantly refused to leave a whites-only area of a movie theatre in 1946 and was subsequently jailed, convicted and fined. Her court case is one of the first known legal challenges against racial segregation brought forth by a Black woman in Canada.

This new $10 note is the first vertically oriented bank note issued in Canada. This will allow for a more prominent image of Viola Desmond and differentiates this new $10 note from the current polymer notes.”

Here’s an image of the reverse:

One things for sure, the Bank of Canada is definitely making our money a lot cooler with the all-new look and security features. I went to the bank the other day and picked up 10 of these bills for my collection.  I have a habit of saving new coins and bank notes whenever they are released.  I’ve been doing this ever since I was a kid and it’s so cool to look back see how our money has changed over time.

Thanks for reading and be sure to check out my other articles on coins and paper money.

All images courtesy of the Bank of Canada.