Banknote Billet Venezuela 20000 bolivares Simon Bolivar 2017

The 20,000 bolivares banknote issued by the Central Bank of Venezuela bears the date of December 13, 2017. It is part of the high-denomination banknote series introduced by Venezuela in response to the severe monetary depreciation the country was experiencing at that time. This denomination was then one of the highest nominal values in circulation within the Venezuelan monetary system.

The central figure honoured on this banknote is Simón Bolívar, an indispensable historical figure of Latin America. Born in Caracas in 1783 and deceased in 1830, Bolívar is the liberator of several South American nations, including Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Bolivia. His presence on Venezuelan banknotes is a long-standing tradition deeply rooted in the national identity of the country.

This banknote belongs to the bolivares fuertes series, the official currency of Venezuela introduced in 2008 to replace the original bolivar at a conversion rate of 1,000 old bolivares to 1 bolivar fuerte. The 20,000 bolivares denomination reflects the extreme inflationary pressure that characterised the Venezuelan economy during this period, making it necessary to issue banknotes of ever higher face values.

The banknote features the standard technical characteristics of modern banknotes, including security elements designed to combat counterfeiting, such as watermarks, security threads and inks with special properties. The colour palette and graphic motifs reflect the official iconography adopted by the Central Bank of Venezuela for this series of banknotes issued in 2017.