10 Pesos

The Banco Nacional de la República de Colombia was a state-owned institution established in 1880 under President Rafael Núñez, part of his broader Regeneración program that sought to centralize fiscal control and end the monetary chaos of the federalist period. Prior to its creation, note-issuing rights had been held by a patchwork of private banks, many of them chronically undercapitalized. The Nacional absorbed that function entirely — a controversial move that drew fierce opposition from Liberal merchants and regional banking interests.

ABNC's contract for Colombian government notes during this period was extensive, covering multiple denominations across several series. The 1888 date places this note in the bank's mid-operational phase, before the catastrophic over-issuance of the 1890s that triggered hyperinflation and ultimately forced the bank's closure in 1894.