Poland’s government has announced the creation of a new printing house for banknotes that will be built on a 17-hectare plot of land in Warsaw.
“We are launching a new strategic investment for the Polish state and its citizens,” said interior minister Mariusz Kamiński on Monday. “We are safeguarding future generations of Poles, [ensuring] that every citizen can be sure of access to Polish currency, to cash.”
The state entity responsible for printing Poland’s money, Polish Security Printing Works (PWPW), currently occupies a century-old building in the centre of Warsaw. It already uses 100% of the space there, but the building is under conservational protection and, therefore, cannot be expanded or developed.
PWPW has therefore purchased a plot in Warsaw’s Tarchomin district from another state-owned firm, pharmaceutical producer TZF Polfa, Poland’s largest antibiotic producer. The 143 million zloty (€32.3 million) sale will help fund Polfa’s construction of a new plant producing drugs for treating cancer.
Poland is scrapping limits on the maximum size of cash payments.
The decision comes after a junior partner in the ruling coalition criticised the restrictions as an infringement of freedom at the behest of “eurocrats” and the “banking lobby” https://t.co/USLAOEiS9X
— Notes from Poland 🇵🇱 (@notesfrompoland) June 19, 2023
“Recent years have shown that citizens of countries which base their drug security on imports from abroad may be deprived of access to life-saving products overnight,” said Jarosław Król, CEO of Polfa, quoted by the Polish Press Agency (PAP).
“That is why our strengthening the domestic potential in creating drugs commonly used in Polish hospitals and clinics is of fundamental importance to millions of patients,” he added.
“This transaction between two state-owned companies will bring great benefits to both,” said Maciej Małecki, deputy minister for state assets. “It is important for Poles, the Polish national interest and the entire economy.”
Poland's central bank chief wants to reintroduce the 1,000 zloty ($266) note, double the current largest bill, saying it would be "more convenient" for people who "hide banknotes in their underwear drawer"
But some fear high denominations facilitate crime https://t.co/5HQIkyaAEI
— Notes from Poland 🇵🇱 (@notesfrompoland) January 18, 2021
As well as producing banknotes, PWPW’s new facility will also print other types of secure documents, such as passports, identity cards and driving licences. Moving to a new site will also allow the modernisation of production equipment, making PWPW more competitive globally, said Małecki.
PWPW offers services to both domestic and foreign private and governmental organisations. The company has signed contracts with almost 50 countries around the world in the last 20 years. Last month, it won a tender to supply passport paper for the central bank in Greece, following similar deals with France and Portugal earlier this year.
💬 Minister @Kaminski_M_ w #Warszawa: Doszło do podpisania umowy zakupu nieruchomości przez @PWPW_SA od Polfy Tarchomin. Oznacza to początek budowy nowej, narodowej drukarni polskich banknotów i polskiej papierni, zakładu wytwarzającego papier zabezpieczony. pic.twitter.com/o2XcU8SMhe
— MSWiA 🇵🇱 (@MSWiA_GOV_PL) July 3, 2023
Main image credit: Narodowy Bank Polski/Flickr (under CC BY-ND 2.0)
Daniel Tilles is editor-in-chief of Notes from Poland. He has written on Polish affairs for a wide range of publications, including Foreign Policy, POLITICO Europe, EUobserver and Dziennik Gazeta Prawna.
