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 currency in hand and would spend funds earned in foreign currency 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 foreign currency in the form of “invalyutny rubles,” and to spend it through the network of Vnesposyltorg stores and firms.
It is important to note that, unlike other socialist countries, “substitutes” for currency in the USSR were issued not for foreigners, but for its own citizens.
A detachable check of Series A—issued for sailors by Vnesheconombank (Vneshtorgbank) of the USSR—constituted a payment obligation of Vnesheconombank (Vneshtorgbank) of the USSR to pay the amount stated on the check. The checks were bound into checkbooks of the corresponding denomination. Detachable checks could be exchanged for goods in USSR port cities at stores of the “Albatross” system operated by the “Torgmortrans” organization. All checks were printed by Goznak.