More than 400,000 public votes have been cast on a Bank of England consultation looking do decide which animals should feature on British banknotes, This is Money can reveal.
In March, the Bank of England announced it will use a nature theme for its next series of banknote designs.
These will feature on the £5, £10, £20 and £50 notes in the future.
There are three categories of animals on the shortlist – mammals and birds alongside amphibians/insects and fish - each containing six animals.
Victoria Cleland, chief cashier at the Bank of England, told the This is Money podcast that the number voting is ‘more than we've ever had on a banknote design consultation.’
The consultation runs until Friday 3 July, so there is still time to vote for your favourite design.
‘It’s been fantastic to see how many people are engaging with this – it shows the animal theme is really resonating with people across the country,' she added.
Chief cashier: Victoria Cleland's signaure is on UK banknotes - and she says wildlife notes were the choice of the British public, despite some backlash against replacing historic figures
The move to a wildlife themed set of banknotes has received backlash from some quarters – namely, the move from historical figures such as Winston Churchill and Jane Austen, to potentially hedgehogs and frogs.
However, Ms Cleland says: ‘Last year we asked the public what they would most like to see on the banknotes.
‘Would they like to continue seeing historic figures and we gave other options… nature overwhelmingly came out the favourite.
‘We're keen to hear from the public which are the ones they'd most like to see on the notes because we want the public to engage with them.
‘We produce the notes for the public to use.’
She explains the move is also to stay one step ahead of counterfeiters.
‘The serious side of it is that we are changing the security features to make the notes even more counterfeit resilient,’ she told the This is Money podcast.
‘That means we also change the images. So having fun with the animals, but the serious science behind it.
‘It’s important to us is making sure we get a good mix across the four notes, because we want them to be very easily distinguishable.
‘Ideally, we'd have something that is say a sea animal, maybe a sort of bird, so you can get the flying and the flapping wings, a mammal that's maybe running around or on the grass.
‘That means we can get different backgrounds, and different types of movement, and that will help people to distinguish between the notes, and also hopefully focus their attention a little bit more to the security features.’
Ms Cleland spoke about the consultation and the future of cash in a This is Money podcast special, out next week.
The public can vote until 11.59pm on Friday 3 July, with an option to pick two animals per category. The options are as follows:
Mammals
Bottlenose dolphin; Brown hare; European hedgehog; Grey seal; Pine marten and Red fox.
Birds
Atlantic puffin; Barn owl; Common kingfisher; Eurasian curlew; Great spotted woodpecker and White-tailed eagle.
Amphibians, insects and fish
Atlantic salmon; Basking shark; Buff-tailed bumblebee; Common frog; Emperor dragonfly and Marsh fritillary butterfly.
There are seven people on an expert panel which will help shape the final decision. Andrew Bailey, governor of the Bank of England, will make the final decision, taking into account the public’s feedback.
The outcome of the consultation will be revealed at the end of 2026.
The Bank says it is a ‘detailed, multi-year process to design, test and print the notes, ensuring they are high-quality, resilient, accessible and incorporate the latest anti-counterfeiting technology.’
