5 Kopecks Foreign Exchange Certificate

Vneshtorgbank's Foreign Exchange Certificates were a parallel currency system designed to let Soviet citizens and foreign visitors spend hard currency at Beryozka shops — the closed retail network that sold imported goods unavailable to ordinary Soviet shoppers. The ruble denomination printed on these certificates was notional; their actual purchasing function was tied entirely to convertible currency equivalents, pegged against specific foreign currencies depending on the series.

The 1965 series introduced color-coded strips — a physical anti-counterfeiting measure that also allowed cashiers to identify at a glance which foreign currency origin the certificate represented. The strip system was abandoned in later printings.