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King Charles’s Portrait Will Soon Replace the Queen’s on Currency in the U.K. (But Not Just Yet)

As the country slowly transitions into King Charles III’s new reign, British residents will see a change in the currency banknotes in the coming years.

The Bank of England released a statement on Tuesday saying the new pound banknotes featuring the king’s image will be in full circulation by mid-2024. 

“His Majesty’s portrait will appear on existing designs of all four polymer banknotes,” the statement read. “This will be a continuation of the current polymer series and no additional changes to the banknote designs will be made.”

King Charles attending the Braemar Highland Gathering 2022.
Max Mumby/Indigo/Getty Images

The monarch’s image will soon replace his late mother Queen Elizabeth II’s portrait, which is currently present on the £5, £10, £20 and £50 notes. 

To avoid environmental and financial impact, the notes featuring the queen’s portrait will still be in circulation until they are considered “worn or damaged.”

Queen Elizabeth at the WW1 Memorial Garden.
Stefan Wermuth - WPA Pool /Getty Images

This is just one of many changes happening in the British monarchy. Earlier this week, Buckingham Palace released the king’s new royal cypher, which will replace the queen’s monogram on state documents and post boxes. Her Majesty’s signature cypher featured the letters “ERII.” (The “R” stands for “Regina” in Latin, meaning Queen). 

The new cypher will include the king’s initials “C” and “R” written in large gold letters. The “R” stands for “Rex” (which means “King” in Latin) and the symbol “III” sits right in the middle. The official signature is topped with a crown for the king.

King Charles III new cypher.
BUCKINGHAM PALACE VIA GETTY IMAGES

The new British reign has only just begun. 

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Assistant Editor, News And Entertainment

Karelle McKay is the Assistant Editor of News and Entertainment at PureWow. Before she started writing about all things pop culture, she was a literal couch potato who loved...