The Bank of Canada first went into operating on March 11, 1935. Currency first rolled out with a reference to the bank’s location of Ottawa. Collectors will find that currency printed during the first two years of the bank’s operation will have value, regardless of the bank note’s denomination or condition. Notes in pristine condition and high denomination are rare, and early paper notes in lesser condition and lower denomination are much easier to find on the market.

In the beginning, The Bank of Canada printed ten denominations of money. A now uncommon $25 note was circulated during the initial 1935 series. The rarest in the original series is a $500 bill, it’s estimated that these bills are worth over $25,000 in excellent condition, prices will lessen with lower quality.

Bank notes from 1937 are called bilingual notes, these notes have English on one side and French on the other. The Bank of Canada previously printed separate currency for each of the official languages. This process was noticeably expensive, and the bank moved to printing bilingual notes instead. The bills were printed by both the Canadian Bank Note Company and the British American Bank Note Company, each institution was responsible for printing assigned denominations. Bank notes printed after 1937 can come with value, but many factors such as rarity, condition, serial number oddities will impact the price of the bill.

Another popular note for collectors with the famous ‘devil’s face’ portrait found on the 1954 run. Currency printed without the well-known picture of the Queen is far less valuable. The value of Canadian paper bank notes decreases dramatically after 1954.  The devil’s face show what many have viewed as a menacing and evil face in Queen Elizabeth’s hair. Collectors should look for a hooked nose in the portrait. These bank notes were modified in the middle of the 1954 run and are extremely valuable. The Bank of Canada and the Crown did not want a satanic image associated with the Queen’s likeness, even if it was accidental.  Like other bills, condition, denomination, and serial numbers will all play a heavy factor in establishing a value on devil’s face Canadian bills.

Our Markham currency experts are very familiar with paper bank notes from The Bank of Canada and are eager to appraise your paper money collection.