A second life for worn-out polymer banknotes
When the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) introduced polymer banknotes in 2024, officials touted them as cleaner, more durable and harder to counterfeit than their paper predecessors.
Two years later, some of the plastic currency that reached the end of their life are finding an unexpected second life.
The BSP Employees Association Inc. (BSPEAI) donated armchairs 100-percent made from recycled Philippine polymer banknotes considered “unfit” for circulation. A ceremonial turnover of close to a hundred armchairs was done at Doña Pilar L. Marfori Elementary School in Davao City.
The donation is part of the Banknote-to-Armchair Project, an initiative that converts worn-out polymer banknotes and manufacturing byproducts into durable classroom armchairs through a partnership between BSPEAI and private recycler Envirotech Waste Recycling Inc.
BSP Deputy Governor Mamerto Tangonan says the project reflects how sustainability was built into the polymer banknote program from the outset.
“Polymer banknotes follow a planned lifecycle from circulation to recycling. End-of-life management is built into their design,” Tangonan says.
BSPEAI president Brent Lucero says the beneficiary school was chosen after an assessment of local needs and priorities.
The recycling initiative extends the environmental goals behind the BSP’s shift to polymer currency. Compared with paper banknotes, polymer notes last significantly longer in circulation, reducing the need for replacement and the resources required to produce new currency.
BSP data underscore the difference. From 2022 to May 2026, just 0.02 percent of P1,000 polymer banknotes issued to banks were returned as worn-out or damaged. Over the same period, 54.75 percent of P1,000 paper banknotes issued by the central bank were returned for the same reason.
The BSP adds that it has yet to receive any lower-denomination polymer banknotes deemed unfit for circulation since they were introduced in December 2024, highlighting their durability even after nearly two years in use.
Central banks around the world change the designs and materials of their banknotes every 10 years, on average, to prevent counterfeiting. The BSP has said countries like Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Malaysia, Mexico, Fiji and Vietnam had experienced a great reduction in counterfeiting cases after shifting to polymer banknotes.
As more polymer banknotes reach the end of their circulation cycle in the coming years, the central bank says it is pursuing sustainable ways to manage the material and prevent it from ending up as waste.
“The Banknote-to-Armchair Project demonstrates how innovation, sustainability and social responsibility can converge to create meaningful benefits for communities,” the BSP says.
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