Australians were left stressed and baffled after a Tweet went viral suggesting that the Australian $5, which features Queen Elizabeth II's face, would no longer be accepted as legal tender two weeks after her passing. Much like the UK's currency, Australia’s currency is set to undergo a massive rebrand following the death of Queen Elizabeth II, however, The Reserve Bank has confirmed there will be “no immediate change” to the Australian banknotes.
This is not what comedian Ben Jenkins claimed, however, when he tweeted this morning, writing: "One of the more f***** things about all this for Australians is that all currency bearing her image, and that's all the coins and the $5, will cease to be legal tender in a fortnight.
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"You can swap it at the bank but a lot of people won't have time. Seems insane to me."
People were panicked by the Tweet, with one commenting: "Surely not!"
Another wrote: "The UK isn’t doing this? Liz and Charles's money will coexist for a few years and then be withdrawn gradually."
Others demanded a fact-check on the statement, with another writing: "Huge if true!"
Regarding the removal of the $5 note, The Reserve Bank said to news.com.au : "They will not be withdrawn and are likely to remain in circulation for years to come."
The Queen has been the only monarch to feature on Australia’s decimal currency, which was introduced in 1966.
However, from next year, the effigy of King Charles III will begin to be seen on the coins, but instead of facing right like the Queen, he will face left.
This is part of a tradition that dates back to the reign of Charles II in the 1600s and states that each new monarch must alternate in the direction in which they gaze.
Much like in the UK, coins featuring the Queen will remain legal tender so for some time there will be a mix of both the new King and his mother in circulation.
Later, Ben tweeted again, jokily adding: "Little update on this: I did some digging and it turns out it was made up, by me. Still, I think it says a lot about society that so many people thought it was real."
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