International Association of Currency Affairs

The International Association of Currency Affairs (IACA) is a non-profit, independent member organization formed in 2004 to promote and encourage excellence in the cash cycle and to provide a platform for knowledge sharing and collaboration on matters of strategic importance. It describes itself as the only organization in the cash community that brings together central banks along with industry and cash service suppliers, offering a neutral forum where public and private stakeholders work together to help influence industry direction. IACA's membership spans the cash payments cycle. Its public-sector members are predominantly national central banks, including institutions such as Banque de France, Banco de España, the Bank of Canada and the Swiss National Bank. Its private-sector members include banknote and coin producers and suppliers of security features, such as De La Rue, the Royal Canadian Mint, the Canadian Bank Note Company and the Polish Security Printing Works, as well as media members such as Banknote Industry News, Currency News and Currency Research. The association runs a range of programs for its members, including webinars, in-person member discussion meetings typically held alongside international conferences, and other information resources and projects. It also maintains an information dashboard and an E-Library of recorded webinars. Since 2007 it has operated the Excellence in Currency Awards program, which recognizes excellence in banknote and coin production, processing, management, distribution and related activities. The awards have come to be highly regarded in the currency industry and are sometimes called the 'Oscars of the Currency Industry.' IACA's awards are open to any organization or individual involved in the currency community, including issuing authorities and industry suppliers. Nominations are reviewed by a judging committee, finalists are selected, and designated voting members choose the winners, who are typically announced in conjunction with an industry conference. The awards program has evolved over time: the original Excellence in Currency Awards were later split into separate Banknote Awards, Coin Awards and Technical Awards, each presented on a biennial cycle. The Banknote Awards have been given since 2007, the Coin Awards since 2013 and the Technical Awards since 2014. The awards are sponsored by Currency News. IACA celebrated its 20th anniversary in 2024. It continues to serve as a forum for strategic discussion and collaboration, with recent initiatives such as the 'Future of Cash Cycle Resilience' focus series examining systemic risks, resilience and coordination in the cash cycle.

The International Association of Currency Affairs (IACA) was formed in 2004 as a non-profit, independent member organization. Its stated purpose was to promote and encourage excellence in the cash cycle and to provide a platform for knowledge sharing and collaboration on matters of strategic importance. From its inception, IACA positioned itself as a neutral forum that brings together central banks with industry and cash service suppliers, a role it describes as unique in the cash community. In 2007, IACA introduced its Excellence in Currency Awards program to promote and recognize excellence in banknote and coin production, processing, management, distribution and related activities of the cash community. The awards were open to any organization or individual involved in the currency community, including issuing authorities and industry suppliers. Over time, the awards gained recognition and came to be highly regarded in the industry, sometimes referred to as the 'Oscars of the Currency Industry.' The awards program evolved. The original Excellence in Currency Awards were later split into three separate awards: the Banknote Awards, the Coin Awards and the Technical Awards. The Banknote Awards have been presented since 2007, with the exception of 2008 and 2010 when they were given in even years; they are now awarded in odd years. The Coin Awards became a separate award in 2013 and are also presented in odd years. The Technical Awards have been presented in even years since 2014. All three awards are sponsored by Currency News. IACA's activities have included publishing, monitoring trends in the cash sector, and presenting various awards. It offers webinars, in-person member discussion meetings typically held alongside international conferences, and other programs. It maintains an information dashboard and an E-Library of recorded webinars. In 2024, IACA celebrated its 20th anniversary. More recently, it has run focus series such as 'The Future of Cash Cycle Resilience,' examining systemic risks, resilience and coordination in the cash cycle.

• 2024

  IACA celebrates its 20th anniversary.

• 2014

  Technical Awards first presented.

• 2013

  Coin Awards established as a separate award.

• 2007

  Excellence in Currency Awards program introduced.

• 2004

  IACA formed as a non-profit independent member organization.

The only organization in the cash community that brings together central banks along with industry and cash service suppliers, providing a neutral forum for collaboration.

1. 1Home - International Association of Currency Affairscurrencyaffairs.org
2. 2About IACA – International Association of Currency Affairscurrencyaffairs.org
3. 3About Awards – International Association of Currency Affairscurrencyaffairs.org
4. 4International Association of Currency Affairs - Wikidatawikidata.org
5. 5International Association of Currency Affairs - Czech Wikipediacs.wikipedia.org