Japan Shiba Bank 1,000 Yen Note

As we reported earlier this month, Japanese illustrator, manga creator and furry animal lover Ponkichi posted his idea for an alternative banknote on his Twitter account after he saw the Ministry of Finance's announcement of its new official designs. He imagined a 1,000 JPY banknote issued by the Japan Shiba Bank featuring a cute shiba inu, a paw print seal, and a flying squirrel in one corner:

The adorable design was so popular that his tweet exceeded 250,000 likes and was even introduced on the popular TBS television show "Akko ni omakase" (Leave it to Akko).

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From fiction to reality

Bolstered by the design's popularity and surely sensing a commercial opportunity, entertainment product company Space Factory collaborated with Ponkichi to turn the famous Shiba Inu banknote into commercial goods.

Expected to go on sale from June, 2019, the goods are part of a lineup which they call "New (Shiba Inu) 1,000 Yen Banknote-Style Merchandise" which includes memo pads, rolls of custom-print tape (masking tape), microfiber face towels and half-fold synthetic leather wallets.

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New (Shiba Inu) 1,000 Yen Banknote-Style Merchandise

Let's take a look:

Memo Pads

Printed in full color to faithfully reproduce Ponkichi's banknote design, each memo pad contains 30 sheets, measures 76 mm x 150 mm and will cost 480 JPY (excl. tax).

Masking Tape

Each roll of custom-print masking tape is 45 mm wide, will last up to 4 meters and will cost 800 JPY (excl. tax).

Face Towel

The soft, microfiber face towel measures 670 mm x 340 mm, and will cost 2,000 JPY (excl. tax)

Wallet

The half-fold synthetic leather wallet measures 190 mm x 95 mm and will cost 2,980 JPY (excl. tax)

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Reservations

To reserve yours, check the official product page here from April 26th. (The link will appear at the bottom of the page when it becomes available, so if you don't see it yet, please check again later)