Bankitalia, 'Invent a banknote': 10,000 euro for education

Today saw the conclusion of the 2025-2026 edition of the "Invent a banknote" competition, an initiative promoted by Bankitalia that this year saw the participation of 965 schools, including 12 abroad. The closing ceremony was attended by Bank of Italy Deputy Director General Chiara Scotti, who awarded prizes to the winning classes on the theme "The new face of the euro: identity, nature and culture for the future".

For the primary school category, the first prize went to the Istituto Comprensivo Santo Calì of Linguaglossa (CT), while for the secondary schools, the Istituto Comprensivo Sansepolcro (AR) triumphed. Among the secondary schools, the victory went to the Istituto di Istruzione Superiore Alberti-Dante of Florence. Each of the three winning classes received a prize of EUR 10,000 for supporting their teaching activities.

A special prize for Italian schools abroad was awarded to the primary school of the Italian State Institute 'Leonardo da Vinci' in Paris, which received a contribution of 2,500 euros. The other six finalist classes were awarded a prize of 2,500 euros each.

As in previous editions, the first selection phase took place at territorial level. Six juries, meeting at the Bank of Italy's Head Offices in Turin, Bologna, Ancona, L'Aquila, Naples and Catanzaro, examined the works received and selected a total of 54 sketches (18 for each school level), admitting them to the next stage. The regional finalist schools were awarded a contribution of EUR 2,000 to support their educational activities.

The second phase was entrusted to a jury of experts from the Bank of Italy's Banknote Service, who evaluated the 54 sketches selected locally together with 12 from schools in Italy abroad, and identified the nine finalist classes.