THE Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) released Thursday, July 4, 2019, the first set of banknotes bearing the name and signature of BSP Governor Benjamin E. Diokno, who took his oath of office as the fifth head of the central monetary authority last March 6.

The release marks the anniversary of the BSP and is part of the celebrations in connection with 70 years of central banking in the Philippines.

The 20-piso, 50-piso, 100-piso, 200-piso, 500-piso and 1,000-piso banknotes with the governor’s name and signature are the freshest set of peso bills printed under the currently-circulated “New Generation Currency” series.

Since 1949, Philippine currency has borne the signatures of the President of the Republic of the Philippines and the governor of the Central Bank of the Philippines, which is now the BSP.

Republic Act (RA) No. 7653 (The New Central Bank Act) of 1993, as amended by RA No. 11211 of 2019, mandates that the banknotes are signed by state authorities. (PR)