5 Pesos

The Banco de Quito was one of several private banks granted note-issuing privileges in Ecuador during the 1870s and 1880s, a period when the country had no central bank and commercial institutions effectively controlled the money supply. Competition between Guayaquil and Quito-based banks was fierce and occasionally destabilizing — the Banco de Quito's notes circulated against rivals whose solvency was equally questionable.

American Bank Note Company's work for Ecuadorian private banks during this period was extensive. The intaglio printing quality consistently exceeded what these institutions could have sourced domestically, which gave the notes an air of credibility the backing institutions didn't always deserve.