The story of Brexit has been rather long and tumultuous, but it has finally reached its ending. The United Kingdom is officially out of the European Union (EU), and the future of the nation sans EU looks bright and colorful. To kick off the news on a happy note, the Bank of England has joined hands with Snapchat to introduce banknotes of £20 replete with augmented reality animation. Yes, you heard that right!
The all-new 20-pound note that was introduced and circulated this week in the country. It has been redesigned anew, and Queen Elizabeth II has now been replaced with the self-portrait of JMW Turner. According to the British government, this new banknote is definitely the most secure one that has been introduced by the Bank of England to date. The bank has decided to use the AR technology through the Snapchat lens to promote this new development.
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You can easily access this feature by opening the Snapchat app on your Android or iOS device. Then, it is just a matter of typing ‘£20 note’ in the app’s search field, and the lens will be brought up. That’s when the magic will begin. The moment you point your smartphone camera on the banknote, the bill will demonstrate a stunning landscape with animations and intricate details.
The excited governor of the bank, Mark Carney, shares, “Turner’s art was transformative. I am delighted that the work of arguably the single most influential British artist of all time will now appear on another 2 billion works of art – the new £20 notes that people can start using today.”
There are currently more than 2 billion banknotes of £20 in circulation. The paper versions of these notes have been declared to be in use as usual until they are withdrawn completely. This Snapchat lens is a unique way of allowing the public to view this new denomination through the AR technology. The banknotes are a true celebration of the extraordinarily rich and diverse heritage of this British artist.