20 Kopecks

Vneshtorgbank's kopeck-denomination certificates were not general circulation currency — they existed to manage hard currency access within the Soviet closed economy. Foreign visitors and Soviet citizens with earnings in convertible currencies could use Vneshtorgbank certificates at Beryozka shops, a chain of stores stocking imported goods unavailable through ordinary Soviet retail channels. The certificate system effectively created a parallel internal economy, legally segregated from the ruble in everyday use.

The 1965 introduction of the series coincided with a broader tightening of controls over how foreign exchange entered and moved through the domestic economy. Certificates in small denominations like this one saw genuine counter use and often show handling wear that the higher-denomination notes do not.