HSP 2026 in Guatemala: Identifying New Technologies and Strategic Initiatives

HSP Latin America was previously held in Guatemala City in 2017, and its return – 10 years on – did not disappoint. In fact, many of the delegates commented that it was the best conference yet of all the 13 HSP Latin America conferences to date (and, given that the preceding year it was held in Rio de Janeiro which set an exceptionally high bar, this was no mean feat!)

This is of course a welcome comment for the organisers, but the reality is that every year the conference team, with great anticipation and precise planning, meets regularly with local authorities to make certain that every detail is carefully managed and monitored.  Guatemala was no exception, with memorable social activities and a diverse programme of speakers in both the ID and Currency Sessions for just under 300 participants from 40 countries and 135 organisations.

Prior to the official launch of the Conference, ID authorities were welcome to sign up for the Pre-Conference Seminars on 1 June.

The first ID workshop, conducted by Michael van Gestel and Maickel van Oijen, of MVD ID Consultancy and Keesing Technologies, respectively, focused on ‘Unmasking Identity Fraud’, presenting physical and digital document threats via case studies.  

De La Rue also ran a workshop, for central banks only, entitled ‘The Banknote Balancing Act’, which examined how to make informed currency decisions. It included cash data from De La Rue Analytics™, the benefits of the Safeguard® polymer substrate, roundtable talks on cash challenges, and a design exercise on practical trade-offs.

Both were followed by an afternoon of in-depth forensic examination of documents by Juan Manuel Padrón of Regula Forensics.

The Currency Track

Looking at the currency sessions first, these led off with one on Design and Security, with presentations from CCL Secure on structural versus superficial security (as in the benefit of integrated rather than applied features);  SICPA on how to be disruptive by design, utilising their stunning new house note – ‘Different Roots, Common Ground’ – to show how to push design beyond traditional formats; and Oberthur Fiduciaire on the company’s  latest security thread  – Anima™ Colour –  which brings machine readability and jewel-inspired colour shifting effects to its micro-lens platform.

Also, Jan Hoffman of Hueck Folien gave a highly entertaining presentation using his alter ego of Bill Vault to demonstrate the company’s latest house note – the Vault Bill – which combines advanced optical and hidden features; and a further look from PWPW at the design and features in the aforementioned 100 quetzales commemorative banknote.

Substrates and Features were the topics of the next session, with presentations from Landqart on its new Durasafe® Eco composite substrate, with 70% of the paper element made from hemp rather than cotton; Louisenthal on TwinColors® Patch, its revolutionary two-layer micromirrors feature with double the visual impact and security; BP Security on how to extend the lifecycle of products using recovered and reprocessed fibers, KURZ on combining security with sustainability; and De La Rue demonstrating how SAFEGUARD has transformed the banknote industry over the years.

The session on Production heard from Canadian Bank Note on how its philosophy of putting customers first is put into practice, using its award-winning new Grizzly Bear house note as an exemplar of translating words into action; from Komori on the importance of trust in currency production; Orell Füssli Security Printing on its new pre-press technologies, including the SecuriX Simultan and Engrave modules; along with SDLE (Steel Direct Laser Engraving), which between them are reducing waste, emissions and lead-times, as well as increasing quality, security, and productivity, the development of Europe’s newest banknote printer, IMBISA of Spain, and its plans to produce banknotes other than the euro; and from PARVIS on VALDA, the business intelligence system that integrates naturally with a wide range of data sources to deliver powerful visualisations through interactive, real-time dashboards.

The final Currency session heard from the National Bank of Argentina on the role of AI and crime mapping to counter financial fraud; from academic Gerhard Roesl (of Regensberg Technical University of Applied Sciences) on the affordability of cash; from Prosegur on the importance of cash usage in Latin America; from G+D Currency Technology on its Compass data intelligence platform that converts raw banknote processing data to strategic insights; and finally, from Productivity Systems International (PSI) on scalable high security vault infrastructure, using a recent proposal to automate cash vaults in India – a huge undertaking – as an exemplar.

The ID and Secure Document Track

In the first ID session on Tuesday there were presentations by the National Registry of Persons (RENAPER) in Argentina, with a detailed look at the much-awaited new digital ID for Argentina, standards used and cryptographic validation.

This was followed by the Electoral College of the Dominican Republic presenting the next generation national ID of this country.  Staying in-country, Thales spoke about their new ePassport.  The Electoral College of Costa Rica spoke about their country’s focus on having one identity system for the nation. 

Finally, seasoned expert Mónica Peralta, of the Argentine National Migration Authority, analysed the strategic role that secure documents should continue to play, more than ever before, given the currently fragmented international order.

Design and security tendencies were the topics for the next session, where technological providers were able to present their latest products. 

SICPA spoke about next-generation features for polycarbonate datapages and ID cards; Toppan Security gave a fascinating presentation on colour and document security, followed by Bulgaria’s Demax Holograms with its E-Motion hologram with new motion effects; and a final presentation from IN Groupe on LASINKÔ and the importance of colour portraits in Latin American documents.

On the last day of the Conference, the first ID session focused on Innovation for Secure Documents.  The first and much-awaited speaker, given that Honduras will be the host country for the CLARCIEV annual conference in September, was from the National Registry of Persons of Honduras, who spoke about the importance of identifying children and adolescents.

That presentation was followed by one from CSIPDyCF of México on expert vision on public tenders as a decisive factor for implementing document security.

A beautiful presentation on the meeting of art and science for PWPW’s enhanced promotional passport came next, while ANY Security Printers presented how ‘Security Begins Below the Surface’.

Finally, Robert Dvorak, with his usual élan, presented IQ Structure’s view on a ‘Smooth Transition into Polycarbonate’ by using sophisticated and secure design.

The last solo ID session was titled The New Identity Frontier:  Invisible Security, Visible Trust.

The first presentation of the session was an animated speech from the speaker from OVD Kinegram on IDB and DOVIDs and their ironclad security features with chip-less technologies.  Focusing on ID Evolution, Infineon were able to clearly explain the convergence of digital identity, post-quantum security and next-generation credentials.

Francisco Mandiola of FMA SECURE and a registered ITSA (International Tax Stamp, Authentication and Traceability Association) consultant, showed ‘Tax Stamps and Traceability Trends’, and finally, Costa Rica’s Electoral College representative spoke about the country’s strategic advancement toward a global security standard.

Sessions converge on innovation

The final session before closing again converged ID and Currency presentations, with a focus on Next Generation Security spanning both sectors.

One of the highlights was a presentation from Quantum Base, which has gone from start-up to listed company in relatively little time, on Q-IDs, which are unique digital identities derived from atomic-level imperfections, making them practically impossible to replicate, and which can be applied to a wide variety of products and authenticated instantly using a standard smartphone.

Delegates also heard from Zeiser about advances in micro-perforation technologies that now offer dual-flip effects and serialisation, and +LATINA on how to improve security features using multispectral analysis.

Last, but certainly not least, Astrid Mitchell of Reconnaissance presented DataVault, a new full-service research tool for the banknote and coin sectors that provides up-to-date, searchable and aggregated data on banknote and coin specifications, along with cash-in-circulation data. As she explained, DataVault is the only tool of its kind for the industry and saves hours if not days in time-consuming research by providing trends and answers on designs, features, substrates and circulation data across multiple countries and currencies in near real-time.

Alongside the programme itself, there were several social events – including two drinks receptions, the conference dinner at the lively and informal Cielito Lindo Grill where the Regional Excellence in Banknote and ID Awards were presented, and the perennial HSP Football Match. This has become one of the most popular fixtures of HSP, and was particularly well-attended this year, given the upcoming FIFA World Cup, with those taking part aiming (but not necessarily succeeding) in emulating the hoped-for success of their footballing heroes.

On the Thursday a number of delegates had the privilege of visiting the Banco de Guatemala, including its museum and offices. The visit provided a fascinating opportunity to explore the evolution of minting and banknotes across time.

We extend our sincere thanks to the Banco de Guatemala team for their warm hospitality and for the opportunity to experience their history and operations firsthand.

In a departure from tradition, the next event will take place in June 2027 in Ottawa, Canada, being renamed HSP Americas for the occasion. Other than the change of name and the move to North America on a one-time-only basis, nothing else changes – the conference will continue its focus on currency and ID issues in Latin America and the Caribbean and will continue to be run in Spanish and English.