5 Australes

Tucumán's provincial austral notes were a direct consequence of the Austral Plan's failure to stabilize Argentina's economy. By 1987, coin shortages had become acute enough that individual provinces began issuing their own quasi-currency — technically cuasi-moneda — to keep local commerce moving. These circulated alongside national currency under a tacit federal tolerance that reflected just how badly central monetary authority had eroded.

Tucumán's issues were among the earlier provincial emissions of the period, predating the more notorious bonos of the 2001–2002 crisis by over a decade.