The central bank of Australia has reported that King Charles III will not appear on the new five dollar note.
The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) states that the new design will honour “the culture and history of the First Australians.”
The current five dollar note features a portrait of the late Queen Elizabeth II.
After the Queen passed away in 2017, discussions about Australia’s future as a constitutional monarchy resurfaced.
“This decision by the Reserve Bank Board follows consultation with the Australian government, which supports this change,” the bank said in a statement.
“The Bank will consult with First Australians in designing the $5 banknote. The new banknote will take a number of years to be designed and printed. In the meantime, the current $5 banknote will continue to be issued. It will be able to be used even after the new banknote is issued,” it added.
The RBA currently has no plans to change the design of any other denomination of Australian banknotes, a spokesperson told the BBC.
It has not yet set a date for when it will reveal the new five dollar note design, they added.
The decision was welcomed by Aboriginal politicians and community leaders.
“This is a massive win for the grassroots, First Nations people who have been fighting to decolonise this country,” Lidia Thorpe, a Greens senator and DjabWurrung Gunnai Gunditjmara woman.
First Nations people lived in Australia for at least 65,000 years before British colonisation, according to recent estimates.
This is a massive win for the grassroots, First Nations people who have been fighting to decolonise this country. First Nations people never ceded our Sovereignty to any King or Queen, ever. Time for a Treaty Republic! pic.twitter.com/J4LjyFXwUe
— Senator Lidia Thorpe (@SenatorThorpe) February 2, 2023
The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites.View original tweet on Twitter
The King became the British monarch after his mother’s death in September.
As the British monarch, he is also the head of state of Australia, New Zealand and 12 other Commonwealth realms outside the United Kingdom. The role is largely ceremonial.
The British monarch’s portrait has appeared on at least one design in every series of Australian banknotes.
However, in September Australia said the image of the new monarch would not automatically replace the Queen on its five dollar notes, and that she might be replaced by Australian figure.
Much of Australia’s currency already features Indigenous Australian figures and artworks.
In a 1999 referendum Australian voters chose to keep the British monarch as the country’s head of state.
In 2021, Australia officially changed its national anthem to remove reference to the country being “young and free”.