What is on the money in Sweden?

Sweden replaced its entire note series between 2015 and 2017 and chose cultural figures over political ones throughout — a children's author, a film director, an opera singer, a film star. It did so while becoming one of the least cash-dependent societies in the world: cash fell to a very small share of transactions, and the Riksbank has since had to caution against abandoning it entirely, on the grounds that a fully digital payment system has no fallback in a crisis.

Who and what is on each note

The unusual part

A country that redesigned its banknotes beautifully at the exact moment it stopped using them.

The practical facts

Currency

Swedish krona — ISO code SEK

Printed on

Paper

Survives a wash?

Not reliably. Paper notes disintegrate when soaked.

Can a blind person tell them apart?

Yes — the denominations differ in size, which is the simplest and most reliable tactile cue there is.

Highest note in issue

1,000 kr — Dag Hammarskjöld, UN Secretary-General

This page describes the notes rather than showing them. Reproducing a banknote image is restricted in most jurisdictions, and the restrictions differ between them.