President John Dramani Mahama will today, Thursday 12 November 2026, officially launch Ghana's new Heritage Series cedi banknotes at a ceremony at Bank Square in Accra. The launch marks the first major redesign of the country's currency in more than two decades.

The Bank of Ghana says the upgraded notes will be harder to counterfeit, last longer in circulation and celebrate Ghana's heritage, national heroes and culture. The series is being introduced under the theme “The Cedi, Our Future: Secure, Designed to Last”.

Bank of Ghana Governor Dr Johnson Pandit Asiama has said the Heritage Series forms part of the central bank's broader effort to modernise the currency so that it stays secure and resilient as economic and technological conditions change.

What changes in the Heritage Series

The redesign covers all eight existing denominations, from GH¢1 to GH¢200, and brings back the GH¢2 banknote, which had largely been replaced by coins in everyday transactions. No new higher denomination is being introduced.

The notes will carry enhanced security features, including improved security threads and printing technology, as well as tactile features designed to help visually impaired users tell the denominations apart. The central bank says the notes will also be more durable, which should cut the cost of replacing damaged banknotes.

The notes will keep the cotton-based material used for the existing banknotes rather than switching to polymer, the Bank of Ghana has confirmed.

Old notes stay valid

The Bank of Ghana has moved to reassure the public that the launch changes nothing about the money already in people's pockets. Existing cedi banknotes will remain legal tender, and the old and new notes will circulate side by side.

The central bank has stressed that the exercise is a redesign, not a redenomination, so the value of the cedi is unchanged. Nobody needs to rush to a bank to exchange existing notes, Governor Asiama has said.

When the new notes arrive

Today's ceremony is the formal unveiling of the Heritage Series, not the start of circulation. The Bank of Ghana expects the new notes to begin entering circulation in early December, with commercial banks as the main channel for distributing them.

That timetable allows time for system upgrades and public education, including updates to ATMs and cash-sorting equipment. Reports suggest commercial banks could begin distributing the upgraded notes in the first week of December.

For households and businesses, the practical message is simple: the cedi you hold today keeps its value, and the new notes will reach you gradually through the banks. The launch also gives Ghana a currency that the central bank says better reflects the country's identity, with designs celebrating its heritage rather than banknotes that have remained largely unchanged for over 20 years.

Source: The Herald Ghana; also reported by Africa Updates and The High Street Journal.