From the early 1960s, the USSR began to develop active cooperation with socialist and developing countries. Thousands of Soviet specialists were sent abroad for work. The government faced the question of how to "shield" them from foreign currency.
A practical need arose to create a system in which citizens would not receive currency in hand and would spend the funds they earned in foreign currency at home.
The most important parts of the new system were the Bank for Foreign Trade of the USSR (Vneshtorgbank of the USSR) and the all-Union association Vnesposyltorg. In the former, citizens were required to keep their currency in the form of "in-currency rubles," and through the network of stores and firms of Vnesposyltorg, to spend it.
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 Series D cheque of Vnesheconombank (Vneshtorgbank) of the USSR is a monetary obligation of Vnesheconombank (Vneshtorgbank) of the USSR to pay the amount stated in the cheque. The cheques were bound into cheque books of the corresponding denomination. Detachable cheques were intended for settlements by diplomatic staff for goods and services in specialized stores. All cheques were printed by Goznak.
The Bank for Foreign Trade of the USSR (Vneshtorgbank of the USSR) was established in 1924. The terms for maintaining accounts changed constantly. The Bank's clients included both legal entities and individuals.
For senior diplomatic staff (from the rank of counselor and above), there were separate Series "D" cheques, accepted for payment on a par with foreign cash currency from foreigners in the parallel system of hard-currency stores—"Beryozka" shops.
Thus, in the USSR there existed two completely separate (cheque-based and hard-currency) retail systems. In hard-currency stores, only foreigners, diplomats, and the highest party nomenklatura could legally shop. Ordinary overseas workers had to use only the cheque-based "Beryozka" shops, which in turn were closed to other Soviet citizens who had only Soviet rubles.