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 hard 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 currency in the form of "invalyutnye rubles", and to spend it through the network of shops and firms of Vnesposyltorg.
It is important to note that, unlike in other socialist countries, currency "substitutes" in the USSR were issued not for foreigners, but for the country's own citizens.
A detachable Series A cheque—for sailors of the USSR Vneshekonombank (Vneshtorgbank)—was a monetary obligation of Vneshekonombank (Vneshtorgbank) of the USSR to pay the amount specified on the cheque. The cheques were bound into chequebooks of the appropriate denomination. Detachable cheques could be exchanged for goods in port cities of the USSR in shops of the "Albatros" system of the "Torgmortrans" organization. All cheques were printed by GOZNAK.