Giesecke & Devrient
Encyclopedia
Giesecke & Devrient is a German
company headquartered in Munich
that provides banknote
and securities printing, smart cards, and cash handling systems.
In delivering banknotes and banknote paper, the company is subject to strict rules defined by the World Bank
.
. The partnership's reputation for quality work was confirmed at the 1867 international exhibition in Paris.
Giesecke & Devrient supplied currency during the inflation in the Weimar Republic
in the 1920s, one of the most prominent cases of hyperinflation
. It also printed tickets to the 1936 Olympics
in Nazi Germany
and did business with Spain under Franco.
In the modern period, G&D has expanded operations to include banknote processing, smart cards, identification systems, and e-payments. The firm is the world's second largest supplier of banknotes, with annual revenues of $2.45 billion. They have over 8,000 employees, and some 50 subsidiaries and joint ventures around the world. The company operates printing facilities in Germany
(Munich
and Leipzig
), as well as Ottawa
, Canada
, and Kuala Lumpur
, Malaysia. G&D currently supplies euro
notes for the German Bundesbank; and the company supplies banknotes for many other nations.
In 1989, the Komori
technology for printing banknotes was introduced in Europe when G&D ordered a small printing machine.
In 2000, Giesecke & Devrient established its North American headquarters in Dulles, Virginia
, a suburb of Washington, D.C.
The firm produces special paper for use in instruments such as banknotes, checks
, bonds
, certificates, passports and other identification
, and tickets.
In addition to Germany, Giesecke & Devrient has printed banknotes for other various countries through the years, including Cambodia
, Croatia
, Ethiopia
, Guatemala
, Peru
, Zaire
, and Zimbabwe
. In Japan, G&D is active in the fields of cards and banknotes.
In October 2002, Giesecke & Devrient, along with The Information Security Group
, Royal Holloway, University of London
and Vodafone
set up the Smart Card Centre, which is part of the ISG
at Royal Holloway.
and Nokia
Corp., named Original1, to deliver product authentication and anti-counterfeiting services globally. Its headquarters will be in Frankfurt, Germany. Original1 will offer of security solutions for the entire value chain
, including user authentication
, end-to-end encryption
of the information flow
and database encryption.
going back to 1965, and they have been supplying paper for banknotes to the government of Zimbabwe throughout the hyperinflation in Zimbabwe
.
In June 2008 U.S. officials announced they would not take any action against the firm 'that is providing key support to Zimbabwe's brutal regime and is also an important contractor to the American government'.
It was reported that on the 1st of July 2008 company's Management Board decided to cease delivering banknote paper to the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe
with immediate effect. The decision was in response to an "official request" from the German government and calls for international sanctions by the European Union
and the United Nations
. Dr. Karsten Ottenberg, CEO and Chairman of the G&D Management Board, explained:
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
company headquartered in Munich
Munich
Munich The city's motto is "" . Before 2006, it was "Weltstadt mit Herz" . Its native name, , is derived from the Old High German Munichen, meaning "by the monks' place". The city's name derives from the monks of the Benedictine order who founded the city; hence the monk depicted on the city's coat...
that provides banknote
Banknote
A banknote is a kind of negotiable instrument, a promissory note made by a bank payable to the bearer on demand, used as money, and in many jurisdictions is legal tender. In addition to coins, banknotes make up the cash or bearer forms of all modern fiat money...
and securities printing, smart cards, and cash handling systems.
In delivering banknotes and banknote paper, the company is subject to strict rules defined by the World Bank
World Bank
The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans to developing countries for capital programmes.The World Bank's official goal is the reduction of poverty...
.
History
Founded in 1852 by Hermann Giesecke and Alphonse Devrient, the firm initially specialized in high-quality printing, notably currency and securities printing. From the 1850s to the 1870s the firm printed some of the important biblical editions of Constantin von TischendorfConstantin von Tischendorf
Lobegott Friedrich Constantin Tischendorf was a noted German Biblical scholar. He deciphered the Codex Ephraemi Rescriptus, a 5th century Greek manuscript of the New Testament, in the 1840s, and rediscovered the Codex Sinaiticus, a 4th century New Testament manuscript, in 1859.Tischendorf...
. The partnership's reputation for quality work was confirmed at the 1867 international exhibition in Paris.
Giesecke & Devrient supplied currency during the inflation in the Weimar Republic
Inflation in the Weimar Republic
The hyperinflation in the Weimar Republic was a three year period of hyperinflation in Germany between June 1921 and July 1924.- Analysis :...
in the 1920s, one of the most prominent cases of hyperinflation
Hyperinflation
In economics, hyperinflation is inflation that is very high or out of control. While the real values of the specific economic items generally stay the same in terms of relatively stable foreign currencies, in hyperinflationary conditions the general price level within a specific economy increases...
. It also printed tickets to the 1936 Olympics
1936 Summer Olympics
The 1936 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XI Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event which was held in 1936 in Berlin, Germany. Berlin won the bid to host the Games over Barcelona, Spain on April 26, 1931, at the 29th IOC Session in Barcelona...
in Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
and did business with Spain under Franco.
In the modern period, G&D has expanded operations to include banknote processing, smart cards, identification systems, and e-payments. The firm is the world's second largest supplier of banknotes, with annual revenues of $2.45 billion. They have over 8,000 employees, and some 50 subsidiaries and joint ventures around the world. The company operates printing facilities in Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
(Munich
Munich
Munich The city's motto is "" . Before 2006, it was "Weltstadt mit Herz" . Its native name, , is derived from the Old High German Munichen, meaning "by the monks' place". The city's name derives from the monks of the Benedictine order who founded the city; hence the monk depicted on the city's coat...
and Leipzig
Leipzig
Leipzig Leipzig has always been a trade city, situated during the time of the Holy Roman Empire at the intersection of the Via Regia and Via Imperii, two important trade routes. At one time, Leipzig was one of the major European centres of learning and culture in fields such as music and publishing...
), as well as Ottawa
Ottawa
Ottawa is the capital of Canada, the second largest city in the Province of Ontario, and the fourth largest city in the country. The city is located on the south bank of the Ottawa River in the eastern portion of Southern Ontario...
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, and Kuala Lumpur
Kuala Lumpur
Kuala Lumpur is the capital and the second largest city in Malaysia by population. The city proper, making up an area of , has a population of 1.4 million as of 2010. Greater Kuala Lumpur, also known as the Klang Valley, is an urban agglomeration of 7.2 million...
, Malaysia. G&D currently supplies euro
Euro
The euro is the official currency of the eurozone: 17 of the 27 member states of the European Union. It is also the currency used by the Institutions of the European Union. The eurozone consists of Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg,...
notes for the German Bundesbank; and the company supplies banknotes for many other nations.
In 1989, the Komori
Komori
Komori is the fourth largest manufacturer of printing presses, behind MAN Roland, Heidelberg and Koenig & Bauer AG . Komori is based in Japan and was founded in October 1923....
technology for printing banknotes was introduced in Europe when G&D ordered a small printing machine.
In 2000, Giesecke & Devrient established its North American headquarters in Dulles, Virginia
Dulles, Virginia
Dulles, Virginia is an unincorporated area located in Loudoun County, Virginia, part of the Washington Metropolitan Area. The headquarters of Orbital Sciences Corporation, GeoEye, and ODIN technologies and the former headquarters of MCI Inc...
, a suburb of Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
The firm produces special paper for use in instruments such as banknotes, checks
Cheque
A cheque is a document/instrument See the negotiable cow—itself a fictional story—for discussions of cheques written on unusual surfaces. that orders a payment of money from a bank account...
, bonds
Bond (finance)
In finance, a bond is a debt security, in which the authorized issuer owes the holders a debt and, depending on the terms of the bond, is obliged to pay interest to use and/or to repay the principal at a later date, termed maturity...
, certificates, passports and other identification
Identity document
An identity document is any document which may be used to verify aspects of a person's personal identity. If issued in the form of a small, mostly standard-sized card, it is usually called an identity card...
, and tickets.
In addition to Germany, Giesecke & Devrient has printed banknotes for other various countries through the years, including Cambodia
Cambodia
Cambodia , officially known as the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia...
, Croatia
Croatia
Croatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...
, Ethiopia
Ethiopia
Ethiopia , officially known as the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. It is the second-most populous nation in Africa, with over 82 million inhabitants, and the tenth-largest by area, occupying 1,100,000 km2...
, Guatemala
Guatemala
Guatemala is a country in Central America bordered by Mexico to the north and west, the Pacific Ocean to the southwest, Belize to the northeast, the Caribbean to the east, and Honduras and El Salvador to the southeast...
, Peru
Peru
Peru , officially the Republic of Peru , is a country in western South America. It is bordered on the north by Ecuador and Colombia, on the east by Brazil, on the southeast by Bolivia, on the south by Chile, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean....
, Zaire
Zaire
The Republic of Zaire was the name of the present Democratic Republic of the Congo between 27 October 1971 and 17 May 1997. The name of Zaire derives from the , itself an adaptation of the Kongo word nzere or nzadi, or "the river that swallows all rivers".-Self-proclaimed Father of the Nation:In...
, and Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe is a landlocked country located in the southern part of the African continent, between the Zambezi and Limpopo rivers. It is bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the southwest, Zambia and a tip of Namibia to the northwest and Mozambique to the east. Zimbabwe has three...
. In Japan, G&D is active in the fields of cards and banknotes.
In October 2002, Giesecke & Devrient, along with The Information Security Group
Information Security Group
The Information Security Group or ISG is one of the worlds largest academic security groups and is based at Royal Holloway, University of London....
, Royal Holloway, University of London
Royal Holloway, University of London
Royal Holloway, University of London is a constituent college of the University of London. The college has three faculties, 18 academic departments, and about 8,000 undergraduate and postgraduate students from over 130 different countries...
and Vodafone
Vodafone
Vodafone Group Plc is a global telecommunications company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the world's largest mobile telecommunications company measured by revenues and the world's second-largest measured by subscribers , with around 341 million proportionate subscribers as of...
set up the Smart Card Centre, which is part of the ISG
Information Security Group
The Information Security Group or ISG is one of the worlds largest academic security groups and is based at Royal Holloway, University of London....
at Royal Holloway.
Anti-counterfeiting
In November 2009 Giesecke & Devrient announced plans to form a new company with SAP AGSAP AG
SAP AG is a German software corporation that makes enterprise software to manage business operations and customer relations. Headquartered in Walldorf, Baden-Württemberg, with regional offices around the world, SAP is the market leader in enterprise application software...
and Nokia
Nokia
Nokia Corporation is a Finnish multinational communications corporation that is headquartered in Keilaniemi, Espoo, a city neighbouring Finland's capital Helsinki...
Corp., named Original1, to deliver product authentication and anti-counterfeiting services globally. Its headquarters will be in Frankfurt, Germany. Original1 will offer of security solutions for the entire value chain
Value chain
The value chain, is a concept from business management that was first described and popularized by Michael Porter in his 1985 best-seller, Competitive Advantage: Creating and Sustaining Superior Performance.-Firm Level:...
, including user authentication
Authentication
Authentication is the act of confirming the truth of an attribute of a datum or entity...
, end-to-end encryption
End-to-end encryption
End-to-end encryption encrypts clear data at source with knowledge of the intended recipient, allowing the encrypted data to travel safely through vulnerable channels End-to-end encryption (E2EE) encrypts clear (red) data at source with knowledge of the intended recipient, allowing the encrypted...
of the information flow
Information flow
In discourse-based grammatical theory, information flow is any tracking of referential information by speakers. Information may be new, just introduced into the conversation; given, already active in the speakers' consciousness; or old, no longer active...
and database encryption.
Zimbabwe involvement
Giesecke & Devrient have a history of doing business with ZimbabweZimbabwe
Zimbabwe is a landlocked country located in the southern part of the African continent, between the Zambezi and Limpopo rivers. It is bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the southwest, Zambia and a tip of Namibia to the northwest and Mozambique to the east. Zimbabwe has three...
going back to 1965, and they have been supplying paper for banknotes to the government of Zimbabwe throughout the hyperinflation in Zimbabwe
Hyperinflation in Zimbabwe
Hyperinflation in Zimbabwe began shortly after destruction of productive capacity in Zimbabwe's civil war and confiscation of white-owned farmland. Food output capacity fell 45%, manufacturing output 29% in 2005, 26% in 2006 and 28% in 2007, and unemployment rose to 80%...
.
In June 2008 U.S. officials announced they would not take any action against the firm 'that is providing key support to Zimbabwe's brutal regime and is also an important contractor to the American government'.
It was reported that on the 1st of July 2008 company's Management Board decided to cease delivering banknote paper to the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe is a landlocked country located in the southern part of the African continent, between the Zambezi and Limpopo rivers. It is bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the southwest, Zambia and a tip of Namibia to the northwest and Mozambique to the east. Zimbabwe has three...
with immediate effect. The decision was in response to an "official request" from the German government and calls for international sanctions by the European Union
European Union
The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...
and the United Nations
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
. Dr. Karsten Ottenberg, CEO and Chairman of the G&D Management Board, explained:
"Our decision is a reaction to the political tension in Zimbabwe, which is mounting significantly rather than easing as expected, and takes account of the critical evaluation by the international community, German government and general public."