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5 Pounds / 20 Dollars Commercial Bank of Newfoundland, Numeric value
| Issuer | Commercial Bank of Newfoundland |
|---|---|
| Year | 1867 |
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| Currency | Pound |
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| Obverse description | Seal, allegorical woman ("Commerce"), codfish |
|---|---|
| Obverse lettering | 5£ 5£ COMMERCIAL BANK OF NEWFOUNDLAND $20$ |
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| Comments |
The Commercial Bank of Newfoundland was chartered in 1857 and failed spectacularly in 1894, one of two St. John's banks that collapsed simultaneously in December of that year — a crisis severe enough to trigger Newfoundland's effective insolvency and end the colony's ability to finance its own debt. Notes from this bank predate that collapse by decades, but the institution's story ends there.
The dual denomination — pounds and dollars — reflects Newfoundland's awkward currency transition period. The colony ran both systems concurrently for years before the Newfoundland dollar was formally established, making bilingual denomination notes a practical necessity rather than an affectation.