10 Đồng Elephant

Vietnam's 1986 coinage program was part of a broader economic reorganization under Đổi Mới, the reform package that dismantled the centrally planned system and opened limited market activity — though the coins themselves predated the official policy announcement by months, suggesting the State Bank was already preparing for monetary restructuring before the Party publicly committed to it. Circulation was minimal; the economy ran largely on paper money and barter, and base-metal coinage of this denomination saw little practical use.

The elephant series was struck in small quantities and exported more than spent.