5 Sen

The National Bank of People's Kampuchea issued this coin in 1979, the same year the Vietnamese-backed government displaced the Khmer Rouge regime. It was among the first coinage produced after Pol Pot's government had abolished money entirely — currency, banking, and markets had been liquidated in 1975 as part of the forced agrarian restructuring. The reintroduction of a monetary system in 1979 was as much a political signal as a practical measure, distinguishing the new government from its predecessor.

Magnesium-clad aluminium was an unusual choice driven by material constraints, not design preference.