The Bank of Italy, like all Eurosystem central banks, has a duty to safeguard the integrity of euro banknotes. For this reason, there is a constant stream of research for developing security features that are innovative and easily recognizable for everyone, in order to make counterfeiting difficult. In addition, we are particularly interested in finding technologically sustainable solutions that can help to reduce the environmental footprint of euro banknotes and of their production.
This is why, in close collaboration with the European Central Bank (ECB), the Bank of Italy is interested in promoting research projects with both public institutions (universities, research institutes and so on) and the private sector (firms, professionals and so on) that work in the relevant technological fields.
Fields of research
The research projects funded by the ECB cover various spheres and include both short-term analyses and feasibility studies and longer-term development projects; they also include printing trials for new banknote security features.
We are keen to promote research in the following areas:
- security features for banknotes;
- technologies for banknote design and production;
- improving the sustainability and environmental footprint of cash.
Submitting project proposals
If you want to propose a product or a concept applicable to euro banknotes that might be of interest to the Bank of Italy or to the ECB, you can contact us at: BAN.RICERCAESVILUPPO@bancaditalia.it. Please include a brief project description (no longer than three A4 pages written in Italian or in English).
To ensure secure communications, you can use PGP encryption. If you choose this, as soon as you have contacted us, we will send you the public key for the secure exchange of communications.
For further details, you can visit the ECB website at: https://www.ecb.europa.eu/euro/banknotes/research/html/index.it.html
