Madagascar - 500 and 500 Ariary 2004 Hybrid Note

Five Hundred Ariary / Two Thousand Five Hundred Francs (not Hybrid???)

Dated 2004, P88b, Prefix A / Suffix T

Hybrid note

Prefix A / Suffix V

Reverse

This is a 500 Ariary (2,500 Francs) note printed with the year date of 2004. I am not sure when these were notes released. These notes were recently reported to be a Hybrid banknote manufactured with a combination of very thin layers of protective polyester film around a cotton fibre core. The polyester film enables the banknote to last a bit longer in circulation, just like the polymer banknotes. Honestly, I can't tell this from a normal paper note, so I went and bought two pieces with suffixes "T" and "V". Now that I have these two notes in hand, I am not sure if both are Hybrid notes. The feeling for the Suffix "V" note with my bare hand is very much different from the one printed with the suffix "T". It feels that the note with the suffix "V" is much thicker and heavier. From what I can see, the Suffix "T" note may not be a Hybrid note. I understand that it has been reported that notes printed with the suffixes "S", "T", "U" and "V" are Hybrid, but one has to get them physically in hand to judge for themselves, and here I am disputing this claim. Seeing is believing! Unless I get to see the Printer's confirmation or official press release from the country's Central Bank, notes printed with the suffix "T" are more like a normal paper banknote. Either way, one of the notes is not Hybrid. In case you wonder, I have more than one note each for the above posted. One must also remember that not everything reported on the Internet is always correct. It should also be noted that the above notes are all printed with a printing plate number. You can see the number on the front of the note just underneath the map of Madagascar. I have so far spotted plate numbers E1, E5 and E6. I am not sure if this will tell us anything about the material of the notes used, just Paper or Paper/Hybrid. The next step for me is to look for one printed with suffixes "S" and "U". I honestly doubt the suffix "S" will be a Hybrid material note either. If you have bought one with the suffix "T", it's time to get one with "V" now.

 Two Thousand Ariary

ND2014

Reverse

Like the 500 Ariary, this note was first reported in late 2014, but I am not sure when these were actually released as there is no change in designs on the notes. The first prefix/suffix for this note was reported to be B/P.