Canada polymer $100 banknote hands-on look finally! (with video)

I’ve written and speculated extensively about the new Canadian polymer notes. Finally, I am excited to say I’ve got one in my hand now. Have a watch of this slideshow of the new polymer C$100. In comparison, watch this slideshow of the HK$10 (which is less than US/C $2).

Here is a video of me checking out the new polymer $100, I slowed down the video at various place so you can have a closer look at some features.

Comments:

1) Raised ink: I definitely feel the raised ink on the large “100″ and the shoulders and different parts of the bill.

2) What hidden 100? I have given up trying to find the hidden numbers (using a single light source) in the maple leaf! Some people can see it, not me. So if this security feature is hard to use, or only some people (or small percent of people) can use it, I am questioning if this is a good security feature at all!

Note: I wonder if this feature is the WinDOE® (Diffractive Optical Element) as I wrote in “12 possible security features” in March?

3) Polymer but not cheap plastic feel: I actually quite like the feel and don’t feel it is “cheap” or anything thing. It feel like it is good quality. But only time and actually use will tell.

4) Large transparent window and metallic strip: I LOVE them! To me, they are the best part of the bill. They are extremely easy to inspect and tell if it is a real $100 with minimum training! They are hard to fake thanks to Securency International’s security features and patented technologies.

Further info: In March, I wrote a speculative technology piece with extensive links to patents by Securency International, “Bank of Canada’s new polymer banknote – Patents & technologies by Securency International“ After the new $100 was announced in June, I wrote “Canada New Polymer $100 Notes in Nov 2011 – Now your money is smooth & will bounce!“

The HK$10 (less than US/C$ 2)

Here are some design info about the polymer $100 from Bank of Canada:

“$100 Note – Design Features
Portrait: Sir Robert L. Borden, Prime Minister, 1911–20
Signatures: Left – T. Macklem, Right – M.J. Carney
Size: 152.4 x 69.85 mm (6.0 x 2.75 inches)
Issue Date: November 2011
Theme: Medical Innovation

Bank of Canada’s new polymer banknote – Patents & technologies by Securency International

Nov 17th update:  Happy to say I finally got a chance to play with my new Canada polymer C$100 bill (with video).
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June 20, 2011 Update: Today (June 20th), the Bank of Canada actually shows us the new polymer $100 notes. I’ve more coverage and technical analysis (with video) here in “Canada New Polymer $100 Notes in Nov 2011 – Now your money is smooth & will bounce!“

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March 13, 2011 Update: I’ve got confirmation from BoC on Friday afternoon the Guardian® (supplied by Securency International) is indeed the polymer substrate to be used in the new plastic banknotes. By the way, for some reason Securency International‘s website seems to be down for the last few days.

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It was nice to have an informative phone interview with a Bank of Canada representative this morning about the newly announced plastic banknote (see my lengthy post here). As expected, I was unable to get an official confirmation of whether the Guardian® polymer substrate (supplied by Securency International) will be used. At the same time, I’ve now gathered enough evidences to convince myself that the Guardian® substrate or an enhanced version of it will be used in Canada. After all, the Bank confirmed that they are using “industry proven technology” (the keyword here is “proven”) and stated in its public release,

“As part of its ongoing technology research program with its partners, the Bank has developed some new security features and adapted other existing features for the Canadian context.” [K: so it can be an "enhanced" version if Securency want to do some more testing on the "improvements" first?]

It should be noted that I know banks don’t usually like to talk about their security systems in detail. Many banks still believe (falsely) that the less we know, the more secure their systems are. Not true! I believe that good security has to be based on solid science and careful implementations. And “security by obscurity” is never enough nor secure.

Enough from me, if you are technical and want to learn more, I’ve found some Securency patents for you to study and learn from. As I wrote in a 2006 article as a side comment,

“For the patent geek out there, [...] thanks to “2165 The Best Mode Requirement” of the MPEP, patent is required to disclose the “best mode” to make this device thus making the patent an interesting read.“

Some US patents by Securency:

* 7,871,741 ,  Method of producing diffractive structures in security documents

* 7,790,361 , Methods of producing diffractive structures in security documents

* 7,652,757 , Method and apparatus for inspection of security articles incorporating a diffractive optical projection element

* 7,488,002 , Security and/or value document

* 7,040,664 , Self-verifying security documents

* 7,029,733 , Printed matter producing reflective intaglio effect

* 6,995,383 , Method of verifying the authenticity of a security document and document for use in such a method

Some US Patents by others that contain the keyword “Securency”:

* 7,820,282 (3M), Foam security substrate

* 7,655,296 (3M), Ink-receptive foam article

Patent searches

You can do the USPTO Patent search yourself for Securency to read more. Or you can use the Google patents search for Securency where you can download patents and patent applications with text and diagrams in PDF files (pretty handy).

Avatar IMAX 3D box office success means it is time to buy IMAX stocks?

Avatar is an awesome film that looks great and, I think, is best seen in IMAX 3D. Now with a worldwide gross box office of $285 million as of December 22 according to LA Times report, are there some money to be made in buying IMAX stocks since Avatar IMAX 3D tickets seem to be the first ones to be sold out first?

Well, to make any informed investment decision, one should study the financial reports of a company and get to know about the industry first. In the case of IMAX, you can find many of the financial reports in the investor relations area.

One area that may send off additional signal is the insider trading activities of a company, that is whether the senior executives of a company are buying or selling stocks. Here is an insightful excerpt from September 2009 CNN Money article “Insiders sell like there’s no tomorrow” (emphasis added),

But against that improving backdrop, one indicator has turned distinctly bearish: Corporate officers and directors have been selling shares at a pace last seen just before the onset of the subprime malaise two years ago.

While a wave of insider selling doesn’t necessarily foretell a stock market downturn, it suggests that those with the first read on business trends don’t believe current stock prices are justified by economic fundamentals.

“It’s not a very complicated story,” said Charles Biderman, who runs market research firm Trim Tabs. “Insiders know better than you and me. If prices are too high, they sell.“

According to the IMAX’s insider trading records, you can find from Nov 23rd to Dec 22nd, 2009, there have been a number of insiders’ transactions. If you read the details, you will find almost all insiders have been selling IMAX shares including co-CEOs of IMAX, Mr. Richard L. Gelfond and Mr.  Bradley J Wechsler. It is worth noting that Messrs. Gelfond and Wechsler have adopted “stock appreciation rights automatic exercise plans” on November 16, 2009 (rule 10b5-1 trading plans) so Mr. Gelfond can sell up to 720,000 shares in equal monthly installments over a 12-month period, and Mr. Wechsler can sell up to 900,000 shares, in equal monthly installments over a 10-month period. To be fair, if the combined 1.62 million shares were to be sold throughout the duration of the plans, Mssrs. Gelfond and Wechsler would “continue to own approximately 65% of their combined share ownership in the Company” as stated in the press release.

IMAX stock price has increased substantially in three months (US$9.00/Sept 23rd, 2009) and one month ($10.48/Nov 20th, 2009) to yesterday’s close of $12.79, which amount to increases of 42.1% in three months and 22% in one month respectively.

Many moviegoers, including this reporter, have been rightfully impressed by Avatar IMAX 3D and see tremendous potentials in IMAX 3D. Therefore it is not surprising to see people wishing to invest in IMAX as we can see from recent IMAX stock trading volumes,

• 1.93 million shares on Dec 11th, 2009, a day after the Dec 10th London premiere
• 1.29 million shares on Dec 18th, world premiere
• 1.08m on Dec 21st
• 1.62m on Dec 22nd

The above volumes are high when comparing to the average trading volume of 586,000 shares and the recent low of 58,387 shares on Nov 27, 2009 (data from Google Finance).

If you aspire to be a long term value investor like Warren Buffett, it is prudent to understand the industry and analyze a company’s financial reports first before making any investment decisions. For IMAX’s financial reports, you can find them in IMAX’s investor relations area. The annual reports and the “Management’s Discussion and Analysis” sections are good place to start reading.

(note: This article is cross-posted in examiner.com)

Surprised kitty video: Attention is money in the YouTube age

My second Examiner.com article, “Surprised kitty video: Attention is money in the YouTube age“.