MOSCOW, May 22. /TASS/. The Bank of Russia has presented a commemorative polymer 100 ruble-banknote for the 2018 World Cup, first deputy Chief of the regulator Olga Skorobogatova said on Tuesday.

The circulation of banknotes is 20 mln and by the end of June they will be spread in all regions of Russia, she added.

"This year our country will host a great event, which is the World Cup, and the Bank of Russia decided to issue a commemorative banknote dedicated to this event. By tradition its face value will be 100 rubles," Skorobogatova said.

The artistic composition on the front side of the banknote symbolizes the continuity of generations. It depicts a boy who dreams of repeating the achievements of great players, such as goalkeeper Lev Yashin.

The reverse side of the banknote carries a flying soccer ball, symbolizing the globe with the map of Russia highlighted on it. Below the cities which host the matches of the 2018 World Cup are written. The images on both sides are vertically-oriented.

The commemorative banknote will be a legitimate means of payment. However, when designing the banknote the Bank of Russia assumed that fans and numismatists would purchase it primarily as a souvenir or for a collection.

"You can buy them in the offices of Russian banks," Skorobogatova said.

According to her, the Bank of Russia has already delivered memorable banknotes to Moscow, St. Petersburg, Volgograd, Krasnodar and Samara.

"In May - June they (banknotes) will be delivered to all other regions of Russia so that local banks can offer it to everyone," Skorobogatova said.

Technology used for banknote production

The use of polymer substrates (fully produced in Russia) imposes some restrictions on the use of security measures for banknotes. For them, one cannot use all technologies that are suitable for paper currencies, Arkady Trachuk. CEO of Russia’s National Mint Goznak, said.

Goznak specialists have developed a number of security features for the polymer note that allow maximum use of visual and tactile characteristics of the polymer material.

Authenticity of the banknote can be checked visually by tilting it at different angles, by touch - checking the relief along the edges of the front side of the banknote, or under ultraviolet light.

According to experts, the life of plastic banknotes is about 2.5 times higher than that of paper money of low denomination. The Bank of Russia will use this technology to produce ordinary banknotes, proceeding from their nominal value and planned circulation, Skorobogatova said.

Despite the fact that a commemorative banknote can be used for payments, the Bank of Russia will not organize the setting of ATMs for its reception.

Russia selected 11 host cities to be the venues for the matches of the 2018 World Cup and they are Moscow, St. Petersburg, Sochi, Kazan, Saransk, Kaliningrad, Volgograd, Rostov-on-Don, Nizhny Novgorod, Yekaterinburg and Samara.

The matches of the 2018 World Cup will be held between June 14 and July 15 at 12 stadiums located in the 11 mentioned above cities across Russia. Two of the stadiums are located in the Russian capital.