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How to Spot Fake Argentine Peso Banknote

    In this article, we’ll show you how to examine legal tender banknotes from Argentina. And more importantly, we’ll teach you how to spot fake Argentine peso banknotes.

    Table of Contents

    How to spot fake Argentine peso banknotes?

    How to spot fake argentine bank notes

    Legal tender banknotes from Argentina are quite easy to examine. So don’t worry about fake bills.

    Just by checking the security features mentioned in this article, you shouldn’t have any problem with Argentine banknotes.

    If the banknote you are analyzing does not comply with these measures, then, yes, it must be fake.

    All these 4 features are important. But we must pay special attention to the tactile relief. It is the most difficult one to counterfeit.

    As for the other security measures, we have seen some very good fake notes. Sometimes they even seem almost impossible to distinguish from a legal one.

    Again, by checking these security features, you should not have problems with fake banknotes in Argentina.

    Argentine peso security features

    ARS1000 Security Features
    ARS1000 Security Features. Official brochure from BCRA.

    We recommend paying special attention to high-value banknotes.

    Such as AR$ 1000, AR$ 500, AR$ 200.

    On the other hand, AR$ 100 bills tend not to be counterfeited.

    For the reason that they seem to loose value, due to the high inflation levels.

    Apparently it’s not worth the effort any more.

    In any case, you could use these security featuress to check any banknote.

    Watermark:

    There is a watermark. You could discover it on the banknote when looking at it against the light.

    If you do this, you’ll be able to see the image corresponding to the banknote (that’s also printed on it).

    For example, on a AR$ 1000 banknote you will see the image of a bird, the “hornero”, a native bird.

    In the video, we’ve used a AR$100 bill with Evita’s portrait.

    Optical variability ink:

    When moving the banknote we can observe that the number showing the value of the banknote changes its color.

    Security thread:

    A thin vertical silver ribbon is threaded through the note’s paper.

    You could read there “BCRA” (Banco Central de la RepĂșblica Argentina).

    And, of course, the number corresponding to the value of the banknote.

    Intaglio printing:

    This is for us the best way to detect if a banknote is not fake.

    When moving a finger over the letters of the banknote, we should feel the distinctive texture of the raised printing.

    Besides, we can also scratch the image printed on the banknote with a fingernail and feel the reliefs.

    Legal tender banknotes

    Argentina Legal Tender Banknotes
    Argentina Legal Tender Banknotes.

    Currently in Argentina (August 2023), there are 8 legal tender banknotes: AR$ 10, AR$ 20, AR$ 50, AR$ 100, AR$ 200, AR$ 500, AR$ 1000, AR$2000.

    There are also coins ranging from 5 cents to AR$ 10. However, the 5 cents coins, 10 cents coins, 25 cents coins, and 50 cents coins have practically disappeared. They are out of circulation due to their low purchasing power. Regarding this matter, we need to remember that Argentina is a most volatile economy with high levels of inflation.

    So nowadays, the coins that are frequently used are AR$ 1, AR$ 2, AR$ 5 and AR$ 10.

    In the case of coins, there is no counterfeiting. But, even if a banknote could be counterfeited, you should now be able to easily spot a fake note.

    Argentine coins
    Argentine coins have practically disappeared.