5 Pesos

Argentina's provincial quasi-currencies — the so-called "patacones" and their regional equivalents — emerged in 2001 as individual provinces ran out of federal funds and began issuing their own interest-bearing bonds that circulated as cash. Catamarca was among the smaller, poorer provinces that printed these instruments; its fiscal position was heavily dependent on federal transfers, and when those dried up during the convertibility crisis, locally issued paper filled the gap.

These notes were legally bonds, not banknotes, which created ambiguity about redemption obligations after the federal government restructured in 2002. Many provincial issues were redeemed only partially or at a discount.