200 Pesos

Colombia's 200 peso coin entered circulation as the country was simultaneously rewriting its constitution — the 1991 charter replaced a document that had governed, with patches, since 1886 — and navigating the peak years of cartel violence that made Medellín briefly the most dangerous city on earth. Monetary stability was a deliberate political signal during that period, and the Banco de la República pursued a hard anti-inflationary policy through the 1990s that kept the 200 peso relevant as a transactional denomination longer than many expected.

The nickel brass composition was chosen partly to resist the aggressive counterfeiting operations that had plagued earlier cupro-nickel issues.