20 Tenge

Kazakhstan's first national currency series, issued in November 1993, was one of the more logistically complex currency introductions of the post-Soviet period. The government kept the operation secret until the last moment — Almaty announced the switch from the Soviet ruble to the tenge with roughly three days' notice, giving citizens almost no time to exchange holdings above a set ceiling. The tenge was introduced at a fixed rate of 500 rubles to 1 tenge, a ratio that effectively wiped out larger ruble savings.

Harrison and Sons printed the entire inaugural series. The 20 Tenge sits near the lower end of that first issue, which ran from 1 to 1000 Tenge.