In early 2009 Bermuda's bank notes will have a completely new look and feel when they are circulated. The $1 million worth of new notes are being launched to coincide with the 400th anniversary of the settlement of the Island and the Bermuda Monetary Authority's (BMA) 40th anniversary. They will feature the first total redesign of the country's note currency since the Bermuda dollar was issued in 1970. They will incorporate a distinct Bermudian look with the use of bold colours, as well as local scenes, flora and fauna, in addition to including some of the most up-to-date anti-counterfeiting technology. The Queen's head has been moved from the main image to the front left corner of the notes after the BMA was given approval by Buckingham Palace and the UK Post Office.

The Authority has updated the design of the bank notes to include the latest features, including a new watermark in the form of a hibiscus flower and an electrolyte in the shape of a sail boat which can be seen when it is held up to the light, a see-through feature comprising completed images of creatures individual to each denomination, serial numbers increasing in size, an iridescent band on the $20, $50 and $100 bills, and a latent image. The notes will also include a see-through Optiks feature, the first of its kind to be used in the western hemisphere, which appears as an oval on the front and a strip on the back and forms a map of Bermuda repeated inside when held up to the light.

The BMA, which is responsible for issuing Bermuda's notes and coins, started planning for the bank note redesign project in 2005 and received permission and support from Finance Minister Paula Cox and the Cabinet for the design via the passage of the Bermuda Monetary Authority Regulations 2007. For the past two years, the Authority's currency unit has been working with UK-based De La Rue Currency to develop the features on the new bank notes.

The BMA consulted financial institutions and will carry out training sessions with industry groups, schools and other associations, including the New Banknote Working Group, which discusses institutional needs and addresses concerns about the new notes.

One of the Longtails featured on Bermuda's new $50 banknote as been described as the wrong bird, a species that does not nest on the Island. It is the Red-billed Tropicbird, which hails from the West Indies and eastern Pacific, for the main image on the note. The Bermuda Monetary Authority apologized for "any specific technical error" but said the Red-billed bird was occasionally present on the Island and was chosen as the main image because its colour better fits the design of the note. The bird in question is larger than the Bermuda type, which is formally known as the White-tailed Tropicbird. It has a slight black bar on the upper wing, black wing tips and little black lines through the eye. It also has fine black barring on its back and a red bill, when the Bermuda bird, which is of a type found in all three of the world's oceans, has an orange one.

A banknote design has to combine aesthetics, accuracy of depiction and technical concerns. The new Bermuda notes feature graphical representations of the colours, flora and fauna present in the Island. The choice of the non-local bird is not the only thing that has riled environmentalists. Other creatures that are not endemic to Bermuda feature on some of the other banknotes. The whistling frog ($20) was an accidental introduction. Similarly, the cardinal bird ($100) was introduced by man. The blue marlin is not unique to Bermuda but the Bermuda Bluebird is. However, the Cahow, Bermuda's national bird, isn't featured