TOKYO, December 12. /TASS/. The Bank of Japan will start issuing new banknotes in 2024, the regulator said in a statement.

"The Bank of Japan has decided that the issuance date for the new 10,000 yen, 5,000 yen, and 1,000 yen notes will be July 3, 2024. The Bank of Japan notes currently in circulation will remain valid after the issuance of the new series," the regulator announced on its website.

The Bank of Japan has a policy of changing the design of banknotes every 20 years.

The new banknotes will receive additional protection in the form of holograms and other distinctive features, which will make them almost impossible to counterfeit. The design of yen bills uses calm shades of gray, green, blue and brown. The banknotes themselves are larger in size than dollars and rubles. Banknotes currently in circulation in denominations of 10,000, 5,000 and 1,000 yen ($68, 34 and 6.8 at the current exchange rate, respectively) will fully retain their solvency.

The obverse of the new 10,000 yen banknote will feature Shibusawa Eiichi(1840-1931), known as the "father of Japanese capitalism." He was the initiator of numerous economic reforms at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries. He also founded Japan's first equity bank. On the reverse side, the Bank of Japan decided to print a photograph of the Tokyo Station building.

The design of the new 5,000-dollar bill includes a portrait of Tsuda Umeko (1864-1929), who became the first Japanese woman to study in the United States. Returning to her homeland, she made a great contribution to the development of education among women and founded Tsuda University in the Japanese capital. The reverse side of the banknote will be decorated with wisteria flowers.

The note of 1,000 yen will carry the image of the doctor and bacteriologist Kitasato Shibasaburo (1853-1931). He is known for discovering a way to prevent tetanus, diphtheria, and other achievements in the field of medicine. The other side of the banknote will feature the famous engraving "The Great Wave Off Kanagawa" by Japanese artist Katsushika Hokusai.

Currently, the 10,000 yen banknote depicts the educator Fukuzawa Yukichi (1835-1901), the 5,000 yen note depicts the Meiji era writer Higuchi Ichiyo (1872-1896), and the 1,000 yen note depicts the microbiologist Hideyo Noguchi (1876-1928).