CURRENCY

AUSTRALIA is removing the British monarchy from its bank notes. The nation’s central bank said yesterday. its new $5 bill would feature an Indigenous design rather than an image of King Charles III.

assistant minister for the republic, but holding a referendum to sever constitutional ties with Britain has not been a first-order priority for his government.

The bank plans to consult with Indigenous groups in designing the $5 note, a process it expects will take several years before the new note goes public.

The current $5 will be issued until the new design is introduced and will remain legal tender even after the new bill goes into circulation.

The face of King Charles III is expected to be seen on Australian coins later this year. One Australian dollar is worth about 71 cents in U.S. currency.

British currency began transitioning to the new monarch with the release of the 50 pence coin in December. It has Charles on the front of the coin while the back commemorates his mother.

This week, there were 208 million $5 notes in circulation worth AU$1.04 billion, according to the Reserve Bank of Australia.

Australia’s smallest denomination accounts for 10 percent of the more than 2 billion Australian bank notes circulating.

Albanese’s center-left Labor Party is seeking to make Australia a republic with an Australian citizen as head of state instead of the British monarch.

After Labor won elections in May last year, Albanese appointed Matt Thistlethwaite as assistant minister for the republic. Thistlethwaite said in June there would be no change in the queen’s lifetime.