Catalog
50 Bani BGR - German Occupation
| Issuer | Banca Generala Româna (Romanian General Bank) |
|---|---|
| Year | 1917 |
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| Size | 108 × 70 mm |
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| Obverse lettering | CINCI DECI BANI Emise pe baza unui privilegiu special si acoperite printr-un deposit in numerar la Banca Imperiului German, Berlin Banca Generala Româna Sectie de emisie: 50 BANI (Translation: FIFTY BANI Issued on the basis of a special privilege and covered through a cash deposit at the Bank of the German Empire, Berlin Romanian General Bank Department of issue: 50 BANI) |
| Reverse description | The reverse is entirely printed in dark teal-blue, with a dense symmetrical guilloche composition across the full field. The bank name BANCA GENERALA ROMÂNA arcs across the upper portion, while the denomination CINCI DECI BANI is set in large bold letterpress text at centre. Numerals 50 appear at left and right within star-shaped guilloche medallions, and a rectangular panel at lower centre carries the anti-counterfeiting warning inscription; BANI and 50 repeat along the bottom border. |
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| Comments |
The Banca Generala Româna was not a Romanian institution in any meaningful sense — it was a German-administered bank established in Bucharest after the fall of the city in December 1916, operating under direct control of the occupying Central Powers authorities. These notes were issued to manage the Romanian economy during occupation, effectively displacing the existing Banca Națională currency in the occupied territories.
With over twelve million printed, this denomination circulated widely among a civilian population already dealing with requisitions, food shortages, and the general disruption of wartime occupation. The inflationary pressure these notes contributed to left lasting damage to Romanian monetary confidence well into the 1920s.