Argentum™
De La Rue (United Kingdom)
Type: Printed metallic security feature — specialist silver ink applied within polymer banknote windows and substrate layers
Overview
Argentum™ is a De La Rue proprietary security feature exclusive to the Safeguard® polymer banknote platform. The brochure describes it as a specialist silver ink that creates a highly reflective and visually striking image, capable of being used as a standalone effect or incorporated into broader window feature compositions. Its name derives from the Latin for silver, reflecting its defining visual characteristic: an intense, mirror-like metallic appearance that is markedly different from any standard printed metallic ink.
Technology & Effects
Argentum™ produces a true mirror-like reflective surface within the polymer window — not merely a metallic sheen or pearlescent effect, but a specular reflection of sufficient quality to visibly mirror the environment. It is a specialist silver ink that allows mirror-like free-form shapes on the final banknote. The critical technical enabler is the smooth, non-porous surface of Safeguard® polymer substrate: on paper, metallic inks partially absorb into the fibre matrix, significantly reducing reflectivity and preventing the mirror-like quality that Argentum™ achieves on polymer.
Argentum™ and Illuminate™ both form part of the Safeguard® polymer substrate, applied at the substrate manufacturing stage rather than during banknote printing. This substrate-stage integration gives Argentum™ elements exceptional durability — they are protected by the polymer film and will remain intact and reflective for the full lifespan of the note in circulation, unlike surface-applied metallic inks which are susceptible to abrasion.
The brochure notes that through sophisticated design, Argentum™ can be used as a standalone effect or incorporated into Illuminate™ and Integrate™ features, creating eye-catching designs that are intricate and difficult to replicate. This compositing capability allows Argentum™ elements to function as part of a larger, multi-layered window design rather than appearing as a simple discrete patch.
Form Factors & Application
Argentum™ is applied within the transparent window areas of Safeguard® polymer banknotes, where the mirror-like effect is most visually impactful. It can be formed into any free-form shape — numerals, symbols, figurative elements, or geometric motifs — providing full design flexibility. The substrate-stage application means shapes are created during polymer substrate manufacture rather than through a separate post-print foil stamping or screen printing process.
Security Levels
Argentum™ operates as a Level 1 (public) authentication feature. The highly specular mirror-like reflection is immediately and unmistakably distinctive — it behaves differently from any printed metallic or iridescent ink visible on commercial products, and the quality of the reflection is visibly absent on any counterfeit attempt using standard commercial materials. Its substrate-integration also means that a convincing Argentum™ effect cannot be simulated without access to De La Rue's proprietary Safeguard® substrate production process.
Notable Deployments
The Central Bank of Libya's Safeguard® 5 Dinar was the first banknote in the world to be issued with Argentum™ as part of the polymer substrate, with the highly reflective silver ink integrated into the polymer window as five mirror-like shapes representing the denominational value around the edge of the window.
The Eastern Caribbean Central Bank's $2 commemorative banknote was the first note in the world to be manufactured with a combination of blue hologram, Argentum™, and Illuminate™, bringing multiple technologies and manufacturing processes together into a single coherent marine life scene within the window.
The Bank of Namibia's N$60 commemorative polymer banknote incorporates Argentum™ as a highly reflective mirror-like ink, alongside Illuminate™ and Enhanced Gemini™, in a window design depicting a complex portrait of the late President Dr. Hage G. Geingob. The Bermuda Monetary Authority's new $2 and $5 polymer banknotes include an Argentum™ tuna fish as one of the primary security features.
- Name
- Argentum™
- Category
- Security Feature
- Effect Types
- Metallic
- Company
- Product Page
- View on Supplier Site
- Linked Features
- 1 security feature