20 Rufiyaa

Bradbury Wilkinson handled the Maldives' note production through most of the late twentieth century, a relationship typical of small island states that lacked domestic printing capacity and relied on established Commonwealth-adjacent security printers. The New Malden facility had a long history with such commissions, producing notes for dozens of minor issuing authorities across Asia, Africa, and the Pacific.

The Maldivian rufiyaa was formally established following the creation of the Maldives Monetary Authority in 1981, replacing the earlier Maldivian rupee at par. This series — P#12 through its siblings — represents the first substantive output of that new institution.