100 Dollars

New Zealand's move to polymer for its highest circulating denomination was part of a wholesale series conversion in 1999, following successful trials on lower values in the early 1990s. Note Printing Australia had already refined the substrate through its work on Australian polymer issues, and the transfer of that expertise across the Tasman was a deliberate choice — New Zealand never operated its own banknote press.

Two governor signatures appear across the production run: Don Brash, who held the position through a period of significant monetary policy reform including the world's first formal inflation targeting regime, and Alan Bollard, appointed in 2002.