Reports of cash’s death have been greatly exaggerated, and as proof the Federal Reserve announced that a redesigned $100 bill will be put into circulation in October.
From the Wall St. Journal:
The bill incorporates new security features–including a blue, three-dimensional ribbon–that will make it more difficult for counterfeiters to replicate, the Fed said.
The $100 bill is an important part of the U.S. currency system. The Atlantic reported in 20112 that nearly 80 percent of all U.S. currency in circulation is denominated in $100 bills. And the New York Times reported in 2010 that much of the U.S. currency held in Foreign countries is in the form of $100 bills.
It is worth noting that the new security features on the c-note led to delays in its introduction because of production problems. One way to read that is that the need to protect U.S. currency from counterfeiters was important enough that it was worth delaying the new production until the presses could print them properly.
Click here to read more from the Wall St. Journal.