The new orange-brown note, the fourth in the Europa series, came into circulation on Tuesday, 4 April.
It has raised print and a transparent window featuring a picture of “Europa”, the Greek goddess from whom the continent takes its name, on a metallic strip.
It also has a portrait watermark and security thread.
The number on it is emerald-coloured, but changes colour when moved from side to side.
The 5, 10 and 20-euro banknotes that have been issued in recent times already feature similar security measures.
New €100 and €200 banknotes will be issued at the beginning of 2019.
“Even in this digital age, cash remains essential in our economy,” Mario Draghi, President of the ECB said.
“A soon-to-be-published survey on cash use, carried out on behalf of the ECB, shows that over three-quarters of all payments at points-of-sale in the euro area are made in cash. In terms of transaction values, that’s slightly more than half”, he added.
The full survey results will be made available in summer 2017.
The €50 is the most widely used euro banknote denomination, according to the ECB.
With over 9 billion of them in circulation, they account for 46 percent of all euro banknotes. The €50 banknotes of the first series will remain legal tender and continue to circulate alongside the new notes and will be gradually withdrawn from circulation.
However, here in Portugal, “the €50 note is seldom used, with 10 and 20 euro notes being more common, but in the rest of the European Union the €50 note represents 45 percent of all notes in circulation ”, the Bank of Portugal said in July last year.
With regard to the old note, Hélder Rosalino, administrator of the Bank of Portugal, assured people it does not have to be exchanged.
Speaking on Tuesday, he said “notes belonging to the first series will continue to circulate and will coexist with the notes of the second series [Europa series] for a long time. It will not be necessary to exchange them.”
Meanwhile, Portugal’s GNR police have warned people to be alert during this initial transitional phase, to avoid being scammed.
The GNR warned “no one has been mandated by any banking institution to collect the old 50 euro banknotes, and if anyone encounters such proposals, they should contact their nearest GNR station” and do the same if they come across a fake note.
To ensure the note is not forged, the GNR advises citizens to use the “Touch, Look and Tilt” method.