Three checks help spot fake 2,000, 1,000 and 500 dinar notes

Algérie 360 reported that three simple checks can help people in Algeria spot fake 2,000, 1,000 and 500 dinar (DZD) notes.

Fake notes are still circulating in Algeria, after several counterfeit networks were broken up in recent months.

Counterfeiters mostly target large denominations, especially the 2,000 and 1,000 dinar notes. Fake notes often circulate in markets, shops and private deals between people.

Anyone who uses these notes in markets, shops or private deals can lose money on a fake. Knowing how to spot a genuine note protects everyone from a complete loss of money.

Three checks

The first check is to hold the note up to the light, where a genuine note shows its watermark and security thread.

The watermark often shows a portrait of Emir Abdelkader. Both features are built into the paper itself, so they cannot be printed.

The second check is to tilt the note, since on some models a hologram changes its image and a small patch changes colour. A simple print, by contrast, stays fixed and does not change when the note is tilted.

The third check is to touch the note, since Algerian notes are made from cotton paper with a firm and particular texture. A fake note often feels too smooth, too soft or too thick.

Notes in circulation

Several 2,000 dinar notes are in circulation in Algeria, and each one has its own features.

The oldest of them, issued in 2011, can be recognised by its blue-green tone. Its watermark shows Emir Abdelkader in a vertical band on the left, and the note also has a 13mm hologram that shows Jughurta.

Its security thread alternates between shiny silver areas and dark areas, and the number 2000 repeats along the right side of the hologram.

A note dated 5 July 2020 shows the six historic leaders of the Revolution against a mountain background. It has no hologram, but the Maqam Echahid at the top right changes from green to gold when the note is tilted.

On the back, a metallic security thread shows the Bank of Algeria logo or the number 2000, depending on the angle.

A vertical note issued in 2022 for the 60th anniversary of independence shows the Maqam Echahid in the centre. In the top left, a raised gold patch shows a map of Algeria with a crescent and star, and it changes colour.

Its wide security thread carries tiny printed text reading 1962 and 2022.

The 1,000 dinar note

The 1,000 dinar note, put into circulation on 1 December 2018, shows the Great Mosque of Algiers on the front.

Its watermark shows Emir Abdelkader, with the number 1000 below the bust. It appears through the paper in a vertical band on the left of the note.

Its 5mm wide security thread carries the Bank of Algeria logo and the number 1000.

The note also has a 13mm hologram, and the number 1000 repeats along its right side.

In September, police seized nearly 190,000 dinars in fake notes in Annaba. Another forger had even set up a workshop in an architect's office.

Security services regularly break up counterfeit networks.