50 Pfennigs Kaufmännischer Verein

Bernstadt, known today as Bierutów in Lower Silesia, was among the hundreds of small German towns that issued emergency currency — Notgeld — during the severe coin shortages of 1917–1922. The Kaufmännischer Verein, a local merchants' association rather than a municipal or banking authority, was an unusual issuer even by Notgeld standards; most such associations left currency issuance to the town council or savings bank. That a trade guild stepped in suggests the local administration was either unwilling or simply too slow.

Collector demand for Bernstadt Notgeld has always been thin, which keeps prices honest.