From the early 1960s, the USSR began to develop active cooperation with socialist and developing countries. Thousands of Soviet specialists were sent abroad to work. The government faced the question of how to “protect” them from foreign currency.
A practical need arose to create a system in which citizens would not receive foreign currency in hand and would spend the money they earned in foreign currency back at home.
The most important parts of the new system were the USSR Bank for Foreign Trade (Vneshtorgbank of the USSR) and the all-Union association Vnesposyltorg. In the former, citizens were required to keep their foreign currency in the form of “invalyutny rubles,” and through the network of stores and firms of Vnesposyltorg they would spend it.
It is important to note that, unlike other socialist countries, “substitutes” for foreign currency in the USSR were issued not for foreigners but for its own citizens.
A detachable Series A cheque—for seamen of the USSR Bank for Foreign Economic Relations (Vnesheconombank) (Vneshtorgbank)—is a monetary obligation of the USSR Bank for Foreign Economic Relations (Vnesheconombank) (Vneshtorgbank) to pay the amount specified on the cheque. The cheques were bound into chequebooks of the corresponding denomination. Detachable cheques could be exchanged for goods in port cities of the USSR at stores in the “Albatross” chain of the “Torgmorttrans” organization. All cheques were printed by GOZNAK.