Move quickly if you want the new King Charles banknote

Banknotes featuring King Charles III are now in circulation and it’s the first time in 64 years we’ve seen a new monarch on our paper money. You might remember the ‘new’ notes featuring Queen Elizabeth II back in 1960, which started at £1. 

The first note featuring King Charles was released on 5 June but if you haven’t spotted one yet, you’re not alone.  

Banknotes featuring Queen Elizabeth II are still legal tender and the Bank of England will only be issuing the new notes to replace those that are worn out or damaged. 

This gradual rollout has been guided by the Royal Household, designed to keep financial and environmental costs down, meaning we’ll be seeing both doing the rounds for some time to come. 

However, if you can’t wait for one to pop out of the cash machine, it’s possible to exchange an old note for a new one with the Bank of England... but you’ll have to act fast. 

A spokesperson for the Bank of England told us: “We’re pleased that our King Charles banknote exchange service has proved popular with the public.  

“We will continue to offer this postal exchange until the end of June, and anyone who’d like to use it can just fill in the form on our website.” 

• What to do with old coins and banknotes  

What makes someone pay £11,000 for a fiver? 

When the first King Charles banknotes were issued, some were put up for charity auction - with one very unique £5 note selling for £11,000.

Simon Narbeth is the man who snapped up the rare £5 note at auction, which had the serial number of CA01 000003, according to This is Money. He runs the London-based banknote dealer Colin Narbeth & Son Ltd.  

“I’d have been very much happier if I’d bought it for £9,000, but I couldn’t let it go at £11,000. Actually, I would have expected to pay a tiny bit more,” he says. 

He bought it for stock and hasn’t decided what to do with it yet. So why could it be worth so much? 

“The low numbers of a new design are usually given to certain people,” he explains. “Note one and note two go to the King and Queen and number three would usually go to the Prime Minister, number four goes to the Chancellor. On this occasion, number three was put up for a charity auction, so I bought it.” 

• Are my old coins worth anything? 

Could it be worth holding onto a new King Charles note? 

Narbeth has already seen the new King Charles III notes popping up on eBay but urges caution if you’re thinking of buying at a high price.  

“Wait and see if any others come to market,” he says. “The first million of the new design are going to be the most valuable because English banknote collectors want the lowest number they can get, but the last notes issued are also important.” 

With plans to introduce the King Charles banknotes gradually, it’s not known how many the Bank of England are issuing in the swap - so there’s no guarantee you'll get one of the first million.  

Narbeth says he’s seeing banknotes becoming more popular with collectors over the years - and the new ones aren’t the only special types to look out for. 

“In the past, collectors were focused on stamps and coins, but paper money has been gnawing away at both of them and now it’s come into its own,” he says.  

“If you miss out on one of the first million notes, look out for one with all the ones or twos, with any prefix. It’s called a solid. These can be worth between £150 and £200 each. You’d be very lucky to find them, because they’re one in every 100,000.” 

There are currently over 4.6 billion Queen Elizabeth banknotes in circulation and, there’s no set date for them to be retired.

“The Queen Elizabeth notes will be around for as long as they physically last and they’re made of polymer, which makes them robust,” says Pam West, who runs dealer Pam West British Bank Notes.  

“They’ll continue to circulate alongside the King notes, which are being used to replace worn out or damaged notes, and will continue for many years to come. I’d say at least another five years.”