50 Tenge 20 Years of Independence

Kazakhstan declared independence on December 16, 1991, following the failed August coup in Moscow — one of the last Soviet republics to do so. The National Bank was established shortly after, though Kazakhstan continued using the Russian ruble until November 1993, when the tenge was introduced almost overnight to escape the inflation hemorrhaging out of the ruble zone.

KM#210 is a circulation commemorative, struck in nickel silver rather than cupronickel, distinguishing it from the standard tenge series of the period.