Bank of issue in the context of "Wire transfer"

A banknote or bank note – also called a bill (North American English) or simply a note – is a type of paper money that is made and distributed ("issued") by a bank of issue, payable to the bearer on demand. Banknotes were originally issued by commercial banks, which were legally required to redeem the notes for legal tender (usually gold or silver coin) when presented to the chief cashier of the originating bank. These commercial banknotes only traded at face value in the market served by the issuing bank. Commercial banknotes have primarily been replaced by national banknotes issued by central banks or monetary authorities.

By extension, the word "banknote" is sometimes used (including by collectors) to refer more generally to paper money, but in a strict sense notes that have not been issued by banks, e.g. government notes, are not banknotes.

Paper money, often referred to as a note or a bill (North American English), is a type of negotiable promissory note that is payable to the bearer on demand, making it a form of currency. The main types of paper money are government notes, which are directly issued by political authorities, and banknotes issued by banks, namely banks of issue including central banks. In some cases, paper money may be issued by other entities than governments or banks, for example merchants in pre-modern China and Japan. "Banknote" is often used synonymously for paper money, not least by collectors, but in a narrow sense banknotes are only the subset of paper money that is issued by banks.

Paper money is often, but not always, legal tender, meaning that courts of law are required to recognize them as satisfactory payment of money debts.

The Imperial Bank of Persia (Persian: بانک شاهنشاهی ایران‎, romanized: Bânk-e Šâhanšâhi-ye Irân), sometimes transcribed as Bank Shahi, was a British bank that played a central role in the financial history of late Qajar Iran, known in English at the time as Persia. The bank was legally established in London and subject to British law, with the bulk of its operations based in Tehran under a concession initially granted by the Qajar government to Paul Julius Reuter. It served as the country's main bank of issue until that role was transferred to Bank Melli Iran in 1932, and introduced European financial practices to a country in which they were previously unknown.

Following political changes in Pahlavi Iran it was renamed the Imperial Bank of Iran in 1935, then the British Bank of Iran and the Middle East in 1949 following expansion into other Middle Eastern countries. In 1952, its operations in Iran were terminated, with some of its former business restructured as Bank Bazargani. The remaining activity outside Iran was renamed British Bank of the Middle East (BBME), which in 1959 was purchased by HSBC and in 1999 was renamed HSBC Bank Middle East. Bank Bazargani in turn was reorganized in 1979 following the Iranian Revolution, to become the nucleus of Bank Tejarat.

A government note is a form of paper money which is directly issued by a government, as opposed to banknotes which (in a strict sense) are issued by a bank which is known for that reason as a bank of issue. Government notes predate banknotes in history, but are mostly a concept of the past. In the 21st century so far, nearly all paper money has taken the form of banknotes issued by a national (or in some cases such as the euro, supranational) central bank.

The Institut d'émission d'outre-mer (IEOM, lit. 'overseas institution of issue') is a public bank of issue that issues the CFP franc, the currency of the French overseas collectivities French Polynesia, New Caledonia, and Wallis and Futuna.

A banknote or bank note – also called a bill (North American English) or simply a note – is a type of paper money that is made and distributed ("issued") by a bank of issue, payable to the bearer on demand. Banknotes were originally issued by commercial banks, which were legally required to redeem the notes for legal tender (usually gold or silver coin) when presented to the chief cashier of the originating bank. These commercial banknotes were only traded at face value in the market served by the issuing bank. Commercial banknotes have primarily been replaced by national banknotes issued by central banks or monetary authorities.

By extension, the word "banknote" is sometimes used (including by collectors) to refer more generally to paper money, but in a strict sense notes that have not been issued by banks, e.g. government notes, are not banknotes.