FW on notes

[buttons]

Does anyone know what FW means, In my job i have to handle a lot of �20 notes and the occasional one that comes through seems to have a FW written in biro in the top corner. I know that people occasionally write things on bank notes but what does this FW mean? Can anyone give me an explanation?

[dzug]

It could just be someone's initials or a company abbreviation - if they are fairly local to you a fair number could end up passing through your hands.

[twiglet4frog]

Where abouts are u from Buttons cos i saw a couple of notes with FW written on them recently as well, didnt think much about it at the time but now i am curious. Im in lincolnshire.

[mycatis]

That is so weird! I had one of those recently too. I'm up in Scotland though!

[buttons]

well im in Glasgow so that kinda rules out the possibilty of it being a local company! How weird! i wonder what it means???? Any suggestions?

[twiglet4frog]

Im going to look out for them now and see if i can see anymore. This is like some urban legend or something hey lol

[Ethel]

fw means 'forward'.

A money handler may write fw on the top note of a bundle to say it is checked and counted and can be forwarded to bank for deposit.

[pagey]

fake wonga?

[rabet]

my wife, who knows everything, tells me that this is a sign used by fans of the film 'Free Willy' as a symbol of their ongoing commitment to animal welfare and environmental awareness.
What they don't realize is that defacing the currency in this way in this way is in fact a capital offence and as such is punishable by burning at the stake, beheading or garotting (you have a choice).

Of course, it might mean something completely different ~ my wife only thinks she knows everything.
It could for example be the secret call sign of a recently formed sect of animal fetishists ~ Frog Worshippers, perhaps.

[jason1980]

Hi - I used to work as a cashier and I have written FW on �20 bank notes before. It meant FOLDWINGS because you would take five �20notes to make a �100 and the front one would be folder in half over the top of the other 4 ones in their unfolded flat state. The FW means the start of a new 100 because you pack them in folds of 100 and place them in bags of �5000.

[spudqueen]

When I worked in a Bank I was told that the only people authorised to write on bank notes were bank staff who could only write LIGHTLY in pencil, otherwise technically the bank note was defaced and worthless.

[jason1980]

i was cashiering dealing with cash takings from holiday parks. Defacing notes Im not sure of but it was never a problem with securitas who took them for banking. You can find many notes with numbers on them too where people have counted them...