Australians Not Sold on Design of Their New $5 Banknote

Earlier today, the Reserve Bank of Australia revealed the new designs for the country's $5 banknote. The colorful bills will go into circulation on September 1, but Australians are not waiting until then to share their opinions. According to Quartz, the reactions have been swift and biting, with several people taking to Twitter to say that the design looks like "clown puke" and that the designers dropped the ball.

The RBA press release explains that certain features from the current banknote (a portrait of the Queen, the size, etc.) were left in place for "ease of recognition and to minimise the disruption to businesses," while the new elements were the "culmination of a process of extensive consultation with subject-matter experts and the cash-handling industry, as well as qualitative research involving focus groups."

It would appear that those bashing the designs were not members of those focus groups, because something about the bills is really rubbing them the wrong way. The bright new cash features Prickly Moses wattles (a plant native to Australia), which one person has compared to "golden staph germs from a petrie dish," and a bird known as the Eastern Spinebill.

There are a few people who seem to like the notes, but general feedback on social media has been negative. One part of the new bill that's been positively received, however, is a tactile feature designed to help vision-impaired people identify the notes.

[h/t Quartz]

Images via RBA