Australian Currency Typo Results in $1.6B U.S. Dollars Gaffe

Australians have developed an inescapable reputation for giving us interesting words and utterances. After a currency miscue by the Reserve Bank of Australia, natives will have considerable cause to bellow “Crikey!” Owing to a news station caller’s discovery, the finance authority is dealing with the circulation of 46 million bank notes that contain misspellings of “responsibility,” yielding the equivalent of a $1.6 billion mistake in U.S. greenbacks.

The erroneous $50 Australian dollar notes total 400 million in all, so even though “only” a little more than 11 percent of them are in the public’s hands, the gaffe is still large enough to have us reiterate our “Proofread, proofread, proofread” mantra. We are able to break that out because the Reserve Bank, in completing the October 2018 issuance of the paper good that is roughly equal to $35 bucks in the States, botched a note meant to honor Edith Cowan, the first elected female member of the Land Down Under’s Parliament.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BxN4PpbBRHj/?utm_source=ig_web_button_share_sheet

A CNN account of the flawed money relays that the text on the honorary note is in microprint, but no matter the size of the script, one would expect for the words from Cowan’s initial 1921 speech to the governing body would be flawless, especially since $50 notes are the most popular ones in Australia. However, “responsibility” appears as “responsibilty,” and no matter how fancy Australian currency is—with The Guardian explaining that Australia was the first country to call on polymer banknotes and that all Aussie notes are different sizes and colors—there is no denying that this is an egg-on-your-face moment for the Reserve Bank.

Australia prints $1.6 billion of currency with a typo in super fine print. I want to know who had the time and patience to stare into their $50 bill to find this. https://t.co/j2YBUK0vSG pic.twitter.com/EAwlCOK1hT

— Kristine Servando (@tinssoldier) May 9, 2019

Despite the embarrassment, the guilty party has put everyone at ease by stating that the blunder in no way tarnishes the use of the notes, adding that it will correct the spelling on the next print run. Until that modified version comes out, the note, colloquially dubbed “a pineapple” thanks to its yellow look, will be a reminder that one should always take extra “responsibility” before granting final approval of a print item’s composition, especially if the good is a form of currency.